Midwest
Minnesota lawmakers debate constitutional amendment to protect abortion and LGBTQ rights
Minnesota lawmakers launched their debate Monday on far-reaching legislation to amend the constitution to protect abortion and LGBTQ rights.
The Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment would be among the nation’s most expansive protections of abortion and LGBTQ rights if it is approved by lawmakers this session and then by voters on the 2026 ballot.
MINNESOTA LAWMAKERS INITIATE DEBATE ON PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE BILL
Over 100 people crammed into the legislative hearing room Monday. Supporters wore green clothes and buttons that said “ERA YES” while opponents wore bright red shirts that said “NO CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT to kill unborn babies.”
Betty Folliard, whose group ERA Minnesota has been pushing for such a measure since 2014, testified in support, as did members of Gender Justice — an advocacy organization for gender equity — and OutFront Minnesota, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group.
A green sign that says “YES on ERA!” is held by a supporter of the proposed Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment at the Minnesota Capitol building in St. Paul, Minn., Feb. 12, 2024. The proposal would be among the most expansive protections of abortion rights and LGBTQ rights in the nation if it is approved by lawmakers this session and then by Minnesota voters on the 2026 ballot. (AP Photo/Trisha Ahmed)
“This isn’t just about reproductive justice,” Folliard said in an interview. “It’s also about pay inequity, historic stereotypes and discrimination that keep on being overlooked, generation to generation to generation.”
The amendment’s wording would prohibit the state from discriminating against anyone on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability or sex — including gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. The state also couldn’t discriminate over a person “making and effectuating decisions about all matters relating to one’s own pregnancy or decision whether to become or remain pregnant.”
Minnesota already has a non-discrimination law, the Human Rights Act, that applies to individuals, businesses, schools and other institutions. The constitutional amendment would apply to state government, and would protect certain laws — including recent ones that have made Minnesota a refuge for out-of-state people seeking an abortion and gender-affirming care — from being repealed by future lawmakers and administrations.
Carrena Falls testified in opposition. She said she’s a college student in the Twin Cities who is “repulsed” by the proposal, which would “enshrine a radical abortion agenda into our Constitution.”
Others who testified against the proposal included members of Minnesota Family Council, a Christian advocacy group; Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, an anti-abortion group; and Minnesota Catholic Conference, a policy organization for the Catholic Church.
Rebecca Delahunt, director of public policy at Minnesota Family Council, said she’s concerned the ERA would grant children a constitutional right to gender-affirming care.
Republican House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth said she is “very disappointed” that Democrats developed the proposal without Republican input. Her motion to submit the proposal to questioning in other House committees failed along party lines.
Democrat House Majority Leader Jamie Long’s motion advancing the proposal to the House floor succeeded with a 9-5 vote along party lines.
“These rights are so incredibly important,” Long said. “We know that Legislatures can change, and we know the courts can change. But the Constitution is the one thing that we know will stay in effect.”
If approved by the Legislature, voters in 2026 would be asked: “Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to say that all persons shall be guaranteed equal rights under the laws of this state, and shall not be discriminated against on account of race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, or sex, including pregnancy, gender, and sexual orientation?”
If approved, the amendment would take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
Last year, a different Minnesota ERA proposal passed in the Senate but did not get a final vote in the House.
Democratic Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, a chief author of both proposals, said several Democrats wanted the ERA to do more to protect transgender and reproductive rights. She said recent attacks on transgender people and the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court have been top of mind for many Democrats.
Democrats have only narrow majorities — their margin is just one vote in the Senate — so they need the support of most in their party if Republicans oppose the legislation. If placed on the ballot, the constitutional amendment would need to be approved by a majority of all voters casting ballots, not just a majority of those voting on the question.
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A new Democrat has announced he’ll challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil for Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District in southeastern Wisconsin.
And while many national Democrats have been focused on flipping Wisconsin’s sharply competitive 3rd District, in the western part of the state, Milwaukee Alder Peter Burgelis said in his announcement Sunday that he thinks Steil’s district is flippable, too.
“We need a candidate who can get national attention, national money to counteract what Bryan Steil and his billionaire buddies are going to put in the race,” Burgelis said, announcing his bid on WISN-TV’s UpFront.
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Burgelis joins a crowded Democratic primary with no clear frontrunner, up against Steil, who has held the seat since 2019 and is a notedly successful fundraiser.
And the district has been in Republican hands for three decades, and notably held by former House Speaker Paul Ryan for 20 years.
But the district has changed shape since Steil first took office. In new congressional maps drawn by Gov. Tony Evers as part of a redistricting lawsuit in 2022, the district became more competitive.
It lost parts of Milwaukee’s conservative suburbs in Waukesha County, and gained ground around Democratic-leaning Janesville and Beloit. Now, it covers Racine and Kenosha counties, most of Walworth County, part of Rock County and a sliver of southern Milwaukee County.
Burgelis stands out from the current crop of Democratic hopefuls, including union nurse Mitchell Berman and Racine ironworker Randy Bryce, in part because he has held elected office before.
Still, it’s a longshot for a Democrat to unseat Steil, said Anthony Chergosky, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
“It would take a very good year for Democrats, plus a lot of money and the right candidate with the right message to be able to defeat Congressman Steil,” said Chergosky.
The district is on the list of 44 Congressional seats nationwide being targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in a quest to flip the U.S. House this November. But according to the Cook Political Report, it leans Republican.
By comparison, the battle for western Wisconsin’s 3rd District is considered a toss-up — and has sparked the national fundraising numbers to match.
And according to Chergosky, Steil is a particularly strong candidate.
“He is an excellent campaigner. He has a full campaign war chest, and his approach to politics seems to resonate fairly well — or better, quite well — with the people in that region,” said Chergosky. “So if the bottom truly does fall out for Republicans, then I can imagine this district becoming competitive, but it would take a truly disastrous cycle for the GOP for Congressman Steil to be in serious jeopardy.”
Back in southeastern Wisconsin, Burgelis starts out with one big factor against him: he doesn’t currently live in the district. The Wisconsin Republican Party quickly seized on that fact Sunday, releasing a statement saying Burgelis will be more focused on Milwaukee than on 1st District constituents.
“Southeast Wisconsin can’t afford an out-of-district Milwaukee politician like Peter Burgelis,” stated WisGOP Spokesperson Anika Rickard. “He needs to decide who he wants to represent: the people of Milwaukee, where he lives and serves as alderman, or the hardworking families of the 1st District, where he has never lived.”
Burgelis responded to that critique, saying that his message of affordability will resonate anywhere.
“Voters don’t care where you live or what the driver’s license address is in my wallet. Voters care where you stand,” he said.
Burgelis has served on Milwaukee’s Common Council since 2024, and is the first openly LGBTQ+ alder. Before that, he was on the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors, during which time he was reportedly chastised for the way he treated female staffers.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2026, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer details his experience at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting on FOX 9’s All Day, from the first “distinct shots” to the moment he determined it was a “dangerous situation.”
INDIANAPOLIS (Gray News) – A woman died after falling about 50 feet from an outer curb at the Indianapolis International Airport, police confirmed.
Indianapolis Airport Police said the fall happened around 12:16 p.m. Saturday.
A security camera captured the woman falling from the outer curb of Upper Terminal Drive to a grassy area below. The fall was about 50 feet.
Several emergency departments responded, but after half an hour, she was pronounced dead by a doctor via telephone.
By Monday afternoon, police were still investigating. The woman’s identity has not yet been released.
Copyright 2026 Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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