Minnesota Senate Republicans announced they are filing new and updated ethics complaints against embattled state DFL Senator Nicole Mitchell (Woodbury).
"Senate Republicans have been very clear," says Minority Senate Leader Mark Johnson (East Grand Forks). "Her actions have damaged the integrity of the Senate, and distracted us from the important work that we need to be doing here."
Senator Mitchell is charged with a felony after breaking into her stepmother's home in April of 2024 in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota.
"The reality is that this cloud is just hanging over the Senate right now," Johnson said at a press conference Tuesday. "And so when you're constantly having party line votes 34-33, over and over again, and you have somebody that's been accused of two felony level crimes, she's the one that that's casting the deciding vote on a lot of these cases that really brings into question what we're doing in the Minnesota Senate."
DFL State Senators are responding to this latest ethics complaint with Senator Erin Murphy (St. Paul) said in a statement that Senator Mitchell is owed due process, which she says includes the adjudication of her case in court, and the consideration of ethics in the Senate.
Murphy adds that the subcommittee on ethics will continue to play its role in due time and that her caucus remains focused on the work of passing a balanced budget, "using time this session to improve the lives of Minnesotans.”
Earlier this month, she was additionally charged with possession of burglary or theft tool. Mitchell denies the charges and claims her father had recently died and her stepmother refused to talk to her or other family members.
Mitchell's criminal trial is set to begin in June, after the legislative session ends, but Republicans want her removed from the chamber before that point.
Republican State Senator Steve Drazkowski (Mazeppa) says the new complaint against Mitchell cites her vote on a floor motion related her expulsion on January 27th.
"Her vote was a deciding vote that prevented the expulsion vote from occurring," Drazkowski explained. "Our contention is simple. Senator Mitchell has a conflict of interest in any vote related to her political future."
Democrats hold a slight one-seat advantage in the State Senate, making Mitchell's vote a key political issue for both sides.