Minnesota Lawyer
Rep. Kurt Zellers
Rep. Kurt Zellers was elected speaker of the House by the GOP caucus on Saturday morning. The five-term Maple Grove legislator will lead what’s expected to be a 72-62 seat GOP majority after Republicans picked up 25 seats in this week’s elections.
Rep. Matt Dean, of Dellwood, will be the new House Majority Leader. He faced opposition from Rep. Bob Gunther, of Fairmont, for the leadership post. Dean led the GOP caucus election team, undoubtedly endearing himself to members across the state with campaign assistance.
“We have a fantastic group of new members with incredible experience at every level of business and education who bring that wealth of knowledge with them,” said Zellers, in a statement released after the caucus gathering. “We also have a crop of veterans ready to take the step into new roles as committee chairs and start working on the ideas they’ve developed over the last several years.”
On Friday, Amy Koch, GOP-Buffalo, was elected Senate majority leader. Republicans picked up 16 Senate seats in this week’s elections and will have a majority for the first time in the modern era when the Legislature convenes in January.
