Rep. Stephenson shares priorities for House leadership, potential special session
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Minnesota House Democrats have a new leader.
Four-term DFL Rep. Zack Stephenson was selected by his caucus in a closed-door meeting Monday night, nearly three months after his predecessor and mentor Melissa Hortman was assassinated.
Stephenson, who represents Coon Rapids, takes the helm as Gov. Tim Walz gathers legislative leaders Tuesday to talk about a potential special session on gun legislation. He joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer on Morning Edition to share his priorities as leader and plans to work across the aisle in a narrowly split chamber.
The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity and length. Listen to the conversation by clicking the player button.
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It was a contested race for House DFL leader. What did you need to say to win over your colleagues?
Our caucus is at a difficult moment right now. We had a horrible summer. Melissa Hortman was a friend, a mentor, a leader, the most consequential speaker in Minnesota history, and frankly, the only leader that the vast majority of our caucus had ever known. So it was important for us to take some time, think hard about the direction forward we wanted to take and make sure that we're a strong caucus serving the people of Minnesota.
What are your top three priorities in the role?
The No. 1 thing, obviously, is tackling gun violence. This has been a difficult summer in Minnesota in so many ways, with gun violence. It should be lost on no one that the reason I'm talking to you this morning is that Melissa Hortman was murdered by a gun, and just weeks ago, we had that horrific school shooting. So we need to take strong action on gun violence to make Minnesota safe for everyone.
We are always focused on economic affordability and trying to make sure that Minnesota's lives are affordable, that costs are still a real concern. We're seeing a lot of economic pressures on the middle class and the working class.
I’ll always mention education. We’re an education state; it’s what makes our economy go.
What could be on the table with a potential special session, and what might be out of bounds?
What we need to accomplish going forward is taking meaningful action to prevent future gun violence, in particular, getting weapons of war off of our streets. There is a broad consensus in the public that there's no reason for people to have weapons of war in their private possession. It is a political issue, unfortunately, because of the strong influence of the gun lobby, but it's an issue where everyday Minnesotans understand that we need to take action to protect our communities, our kids, our families, and that these weapons have no place in our society.
The lobby would say a ban on assault rifles would be unconstitutional, and why even bring it up?
Yeah, I don't agree. I think that the Second Amendment clearly protects people's right to bear arms. But, you know, these weapons didn't even exist at the time the thing was adopted. We're not talking about muskets anymore. We're talking about weapons with mass magazines that can carry hundreds of rounds, and weapons that can shoot several people in just seconds.
There clearly are limits to the Second Amendment, reasonable limits, and I think most Minnesotans would agree that weapons of war fall within that. And we should note that for a very long time, it has been clearly constitutional to ban things like fully automatic weapons — Uzis and machine guns — so there's not a limitless Second Amendment.
And what about mental health supports?
Our caucus has been really focused on mental health for many years, and we will never turn [down] an opportunity to do more for mental health. In Minnesota, there's an ongoing mental health crisis, but we can't be distracted from the real issue here, which is the guns and the weapons of war on the streets.
Do you have a gut feeling on whether there will be a special session or not?
I think that it really depends on whether we can get the Republicans to agree to do something meaningful. My caucus is taking really strong action on gun violence issues. In recent years, we passed universal background checks and red flag laws. These are provisions that were supported by over 80 percent of Minnesotans and are saving lives today, but not a single Republican voted for them when we had them up in the House.
I'm hopeful that that will change now and that we can work together, because, as you know, the Minnesota House will be at a tie after next week's election, and so we will need Republican support to pass these bills that Minnesotans want. There's a strong majority in favor of banning these weapons of war, and I hope that my Republican colleagues join us in trying to make that happen.
The math needs to work in the House for such a bill to pass. Who would you talk to to get those votes?
I'll talk to anyone on the Republican side. This is an issue where we know no one's off limits. We're going to try and get someone to join with the vast majority of Minnesotans who think that these weapons of war don't belong on our streets. I'll talk to anyone.
How do you characterize your relationship with Republican Speaker Lisa Demuth, with whom you’ll work closely in a divided House?
Speaker Demuth and I came into the House together. We've known each other since we were both elected. We have a positive and productive relationship. We don't always agree, and we can have those disagreements and still continue to work. We're both strong advocates for our caucuses, but I expect that we'll be able to be cordial and productive.
What did you learn from your mentor, Melissa Hortman, when it comes to navigating difficulties in a split House?
A couple things. One is: you’ve got to treat everyone with the respect that they deserve. Melissa was a firm believer in the golden rule, and it guided the way that she approached every aspect of her life, particularly her job. And part of that is just being willing to talk to anyone. Even if they don't agree with you, even if they're not going to vote for your bill, have a conversation. Maybe you can make your bill a little bit better. Maybe you can find that little place of unexpected agreement that leads to something else.
Mostly, Melissa was a big believer in just putting your head down and getting the work done, and that's one of the reasons why she and I got along so well, because we both just had a deep commitment to doing the work.
