MINNEAPOLIS -- State Rep. Marty Seifert of Marshall was elected Saturday to lead the Republicans in the Minnesota House of Representatives in what was described as a fresh start for the caucus, which lost control of the chamber in this month's elections.
After the GOP saw its68-66 majority give way as DFLers won 85 seats, the49 members remaining engaged in hours of intense soul-searching before Seifert won unanimously on the fourth ballot at the meeting in Eagan.
Seifert described the dynamic that led to his selection as "fairly somber." He signaled that the party looks at this moment as a time for rebirth and revival. He said the caucus would notmerely be naysayers to the DFL agenda.
"We matter in Minnesota; we are going to stand together as a caucus and a team with our governor," he said.
He said that under his leadership, the House GOP will offer positive alternatives to the DFL majority on matters of fiscal responsibility, educational accountability and health-care reform.
ADVERTISEMENT
Seifert said that the DFL, in choosing two Minneapolis legislators as leaders of the House and Senate, has signaled that the inner-ring city and the Iron Range "run the place." The DFL House caucus selected Rep. Margaret Anderson Kelliher as its leader, and the DFL Senate caucus picked Sen. Larry Pogemiller of Minneapolis.
