Minnesota House of Representatives

The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B (for example, House district 32B is geographically within Senate district 32). Both chambers of the legislature meet between January and the third Monday in May each year, not to exceed 120 days per biennium. House floor sessions are held inside the Minnesota State Capitol building in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Offices of all its members are in the State Office Building, connected by tunnel just to the west of the Capitol. Often referred to as the S.O.B. by members and staff, it is in this building where most House committee hearings are held.

Following the 2004 election, a significant Republican majority of 81–53 was reduced to 68–66. In 2006, the tide turned even further, with the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Caucus (DFL) gaining an 85–49 majority. Shortly following the election, State Representative Mark Olson was suspended from the Republican Caucus and declared himself a member of an Independent-Republican Caucus bringing the chamber’s affiliation to 85–48–1. In 2008 the DFL added two more seats to their caucus, and Republicans reclaimed Olson's Seat bringing the 2009–10 total to 87–47.

In the 2010 election, Republicans won a majority of 72–62, and chose Kurt Zellers to be their Speaker.