On Monday, the Minnesota Senate voted on a bipartisan resolution to end Governor Tim Walz’s peacetime emergency powers relative to the COVID-19 pandemic. The vote aims to end the state’s longest peacetime emergency in history, which began when Gov. Walz first put the state under emergency powers back on March 13, 2020.

“What Minnesotans need to know is by declaring statewide emergency powers, we no longer have a representative democracy. One man in Ramsey county is determining the fate of our schools, churches, communities, and families. These emergency powers were intended to allow quick action to prepare the state in the cases where local communities need resources to combat a threat. We have been dealing with COVID-19 for over four months now,” said Senator Mark Johnson (R-East Grand Forks). “Minnesotans don’t need more statewide mandates. We need the Governor to trust Minnesotans again. To support this, today, we voted to end the Governor’s emergency powers related to COVID-19, to ensure that any future solutions take into account the view of the legislature and our communities that are now prepared for this pandemic and eager to start rebuilding this state.”

The vote to end the peacetime emergency was passed 36-31 with bipartisan support. The resolution now heads to the House, where it requires majority support before it can be adopted.