Bakk ousted as top Democrat in Minnesota Senate
Tom Bakk (Supplied)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Following a closed-door meeting on Saturday, Minnesota Democrats have a new leader in the Senate.
The party has installed Senator Susan Kent as the new minority leader, ousting Senator Tom Bakk who had held the position over the last eight years.
Kent is from Woodbury, while Bakk is from Cook. The move reflects the shifting power dynamic in the caucus away from the Iron Range, which has long been a DFL stronghold, and toward the Twin Cities Metro.
The shakeup ends two months of uncertainty about who would lead the caucus into the 2020 election, when Democrats will try to retake the Senate. Along with the House and governor’s office, the DFL would then control all levers of state government.
Republicans currently control the chamber, 35-32.