Where Minnesota's top governor candidates stand on DFL trifecta laws
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Demuth and Klobuchar addressed top issues in a broadcast debate Wednesday night. Screenshot: Fox9 via YouTube
Tweaks to laws passed during the DFL trifecta could be on the table next year — regardless of who wins Minnesota's governor's race.
Why it matters: Changes to the policies enacted in 2023 and 2024, when Democrats had full control of state government, could directly impact benefits and bottom lines for families and businesses statewide.
State of play: Republican Lisa Demuth has made rolling back major DFL policies a centerpiece of her campaign, arguing that Democrats spent too much and failed to consider "unintended consequences" during their two years of full control.
Democrat Amy Klobuchar is also open to re-evaluating some programs.
- "I'll look at everything with this top-to-bottom review," she told Axios.
Yes, but: There are big differences in how far they'd go — and how much they're revealing about their plans.
Zoom in: Here's where both candidates say they stand on some of the marquee trifecta laws:
🤰 Paid family and medical leave: Demuth, who was House GOP leader during the trifecta, says she'd consider "back scaling" the maximum annual leave of 20 weeks, adding fraud safeguards and exempting schools and other government entities from the benefit mandate.
- She opposes putting more general fund dollars into the program or raising the current payroll tax rates.
Klobuchar says she's open to "improvements" to ward off "fiscal issues in the future" and better serve workers and employers, though she hasn't offered specifics. She told Axios that she supports the current leave levels.
🍽️ Universal school meals: Demuth has floated reinstating an income cap in response to rising costs and food waste, arguing that families "making a seven-figure income" don't need taxpayer-funded school breakfast and lunch.
- Klobuchar called the meals initiative a "good thing" in an interview. She said she wants to fix a funding hit many schools took when families no longer needed to fill out forms to get free or reduced lunch.
💰 Taxes: Demuth says she'd drop automatic gas tax increases indexed to inflation and roll back car tab hikes, capping the fees at $99. She also wants to go beyond what DFL lawmakers did by fully eliminating state income taxes on Social Security benefits.
- Klobuchar said during a debate this week that she's "not going to raise taxes, and if I can, I'll lower them, including on Social Security."
🏥 Abortion: Klobuchar tells Axios she's a strong supporter of the DFL's landmark law codifying abortion rights after Roe v. Wade was overturned.
- Demuth, who opposed that measure and authored other abortion bans as a legislator, hasn't said whether she'd try to repeal it as governor. But she called abortion access "settled law here in the state of Minnesota" after Wednesday's debate, per MPR News.
The bottom line: The next governor won't be able to change much about the laws without support of the Legislature, and majority control of both chambers is up for grabs this November.
- Even if Klobuchar supports cuts or rollbacks, she'd likely face resistance from legislative Democrats who supported the initial measures.