ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will present his two-year budget proposal on Thursday amid an ongoing power struggle at the Capitol. 

Watch live: Walz is scheduled to present his plan at noon. You can watch it live in the player above. 

Minnesota budget outlook

The backstory:

Two years after seeing a record-setting projected surplus of $17.5 billion in 2023, the Minnesota Legislature will be faced with much less of a fiscal cushion this session as state leaders projected a $616 million balance at the end of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-27 biennium, according to the budget outlook released in December 2024. That’s $1.1 billion lower than previously forecast. 

The budget outlook is often the playbook for crafting the two-year budget. And with less money to spend this year, it’s expected that Walz’s plan will likely feature measures to control spending. 

This comes after the last budget year in 2023 when Democrats, who controlled the governor’s office, House and Senate, passed a roughly $70.6 billion budget plan — the highest ever in the state. 

What’s next:

Another economic forecast will be released in February, and then state lawmakers in the House and Senate will craft their own budgets. 

The budget will need to pass both chambers and receive the governor’s signature before July 1 or some parts of the state government could face a shut-down. 

Power struggle at the Minnesota Capitol

Dig deeper:

Walz’s budget announcement on Thursday comes as a power struggle in the Minnesota House of Representatives continues. Democrats and Republicans continue to argue about a power-sharing agreement in the House, with DFLers sitting out the first day of the legislative session believing they blocked a quorum. However, Republicans carried on as usual with a regular floor session — albeit a half-empty one — and committee hearings.

Democrats have filed a petition to the Supreme Court against Republicans after they carried on business as usual this week, and they’ve asked the court to decide whether a quorum requires 68 or 67 members of the 134-member body. Only 133 members are currently sworn in, and Republicans have the current majority, 67-66. 

READ MORE: Taxpayers footing bill for political battle over Minnesota House

A special election on Jan. 28 in House District 40B will determine if the House is evenly split 67-67 or if Republicans control the House by a margin of 68-66. 

Meanwhile, in the Senate, Republicans and Democrats have agreed on a power-sharing agreement for the time being. The chamber is tied at 33-33 due to a vacant seat in Senate District 60. A special election for that seat will be held on Jan. 28. 

Associated Press

Minnesota Timberwolves (21-19, eighth in the Western Conference) vs. New York Knicks (27-15, third in the Eastern Conference)

New York; Friday, 7:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: New York hosts the Minnesota Timberwolves after the Knicks took down the Philadelphia 76ers 125-119 in overtime.

The Knicks are 13-7 on their home court. New York is fourth in the Eastern Conference scoring 117.4 points while shooting 49.6% from the field.

The Timberwolves are 11-10 in road games. Minnesota averages 109.8 points and has outscored opponents by 1.9 points per game.

The Knicks’ 13.3 made 3-pointers per game this season are just 0.4 more made shots on average than the 12.9 per game the Timberwolves give up. The Timberwolves average 15.1 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.5 more made shots on average than the 13.6 per game the Knicks give up.

TOP PERFORMERS: Karl-Anthony Towns is averaging 25.4 points, 13.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists for the Knicks.

Anthony Edwards is averaging 25.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the Timberwolves.

LAST 10 GAMES: Knicks: 5-5, averaging 116.9 points, 45.2 rebounds, 25.5 assists, 7.4 steals and 3.2 blocks per game while shooting 48.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.1 points per game.

Timberwolves: 5-5, averaging 111.3 points, 46.6 rebounds, 23.7 assists, 5.8 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 46.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.1 points.

INJURIES: Knicks: Karl-Anthony Towns: day to day (thumb), Mitchell Robinson: out (ankle).

Timberwolves: Terrence Shannon Jr.: out (ankle).

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Two election judges from different parts of the state now face criminal charges for their conduct on Election Day, adding to a list of concerning incidents that occurred when voters went to the polls in Minnesota.

Two months later, state officials are still dealing with the fallout as the nation prepares to swear in the next president. 

While there are no allegations of widespread voter fraud or misconduct, problems did surface, including missing ballots, unregistered voters and election judge violations.

“The unintended rippling effect may be feeding into false narratives… that perhaps there’s rampant voting fraud in the state of Minnesota when we all know that’s not the case,” said Annastacia Belladonna-Carrera, executive director of Common Cause Minnesota, a nonpartisan group working to ensure safe, secure and fair elections. 

Family matters in Ceylon

5 INVESTIGATES uncovered one incident in the small town of Ceylon, Minn., minutes from the Iowa border.

Mary Muller, the city clerk, was charged with a misdemeanor after serving as head election judge in the same precinct where her husband was on the ballot, a violation of state law.

Terry Muller ran for city council and won the seat. 

“Part of this whole situation is election integrity matters,” said John Gibeau, the longtime mayor of Ceylon who lost his reelection bid in November.

5 INVESTIGATES traveled to the remote southwest Minnesota town where Ms. Muller continues to serve as clerk.

“I’m not talking to you,” she said as she gathered her things and started to walk out of city hall. “Get out of my office. Get out of my office.”

As Muller got in her car, she said, “It’s all a f–king joke” before leaving.

“At the end of the day, just the implication that somebody might have done something wrong or made a mistake, it gives the impression that maybe things are not on the up and up,” Gibeau said. “If one person thinks that and then doesn’t vote, that’s a big fail as a democracy.”

High-profile cases

There is no allegation that what happened in Ceylon changed the outcome of the election, but the people who work to ensure fairness say the problems should be a wake-up call.

“It chips away at our democracy,” Belladonna-Carrera said, calling the issues this election day “unusual.”

Case in point: Scott County.

A recount in the extremely close race between incumbent DFL Rep. Brad Tabke and Republican challenger Aaron Paul revealed that 20 ballots disappeared and were likely tossed in the trash. 

This week, a judge denied the Republican’s request for a special election, but not before the state House started its session in chaos.

It’s also not the only high-profile Election Day controversy. Days before the election, the State Supreme Court found Hennepin County broke the law in how it picked election judges – something it managed to fix before Election Day.

County clerk faces felonies

Almost 200 miles away, Hubbard County prosecutors charged election judge Tim Scouton with two felonies – saying he allowed 11 people to vote who were not registered.

Charging documents suggest confusion inside the precinct that day over where the voter registration forms were located.

5 INVESTIGATES also made the trip to Hubbard County for a recent Badoura Township meeting, where Scouton continues to serve as clerk.

“Goodbye,” he said as 5 INVESTIGATES approached with a camera and microphone. Scouton left and never returned for the meeting.

Fellow board members said they still felt confident with Scouton serving as clerk, but said they only knew what they read in the news.

“We don’t know what happened. We were totally out of it,” said Theora Goodrich, board supervisor.

Election worker training

Belladonna-Carrera says that while these issues may seem minor, they collectively represent a broader problem.

“I think what this signals is perhaps a need to revisit the training aspect of these folks that are out there,” she said.

The Secretary of State’s office said the training of election judges is the responsibility of the individual counties and cities that hire them. However, the office does provide training guides, manuals, and even videos.

“Our office goes above and beyond what is legally required to ensure localities are supported in training their election judges,” said Cassondra Knudson, spokesperson for the SOS office.

Knudson said it’s extremely rare, but “occasionally errors or intentional violations of election laws do occur,” adding that redundancies in place ensure they’re caught quickly.

Belladonna-Carrera plans to address the issue before the next election cycle.

“I have no doubt that we have safe, secure elections. But I also don’t think that we should sort of sweep it to the side and say, well, it just happens to be in one instance or the other instance,” Belladonna-Carrera said. “All of our voters are owed a level of confidence.”