ST. PAUL, Minn. — Half of the Minnesota House chamber stood empty on Tuesday, as every Democratic member took the unprecedented step of boycotting the first day of session to try and block Republicans from taking control.

Republicans charged forward anyway, disregarding Secretary of State Steve Simon’s ruling that a quorum wasn’t present. They then began their own proceedings, voting to elect House GOP Leader Lisa Demuth as speaker of the chamber in a possibly illegitimate move that is likely to end up before the Minnesota Supreme Court.

“There is serious work that needs to be done here in the state of Minnesota,” Demuth, R-Cold Spring, said after Republicans adjourned session. “We look forward to when our Democratic colleagues choose to join us and choose to represent the areas they have been elected by voters.”

Simon, who must serve as the House’s initial presiding officer following an election, ruled that there weren’t the required 68 of 134 members present to do work and adjourned. House DFL Leader Melissa Hortman called everything that followed a “completely sham proceeding” and said they will ask the courts to weigh in.

“I expect that they will find it was unconstitutional,” said Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park. “We had to deny quorum to demonstrate the legal reality that they cannot even convene the House of Representatives without bipartisan collaboration.”

The historic acrimony between the two parties comes as Republicans hold a temporary 67-66 edge in the House until a Jan. 28 special election to fill a likely blue Roseville-area seat. The House GOP and DFL had been negotiating a potential power-sharing agreement as late as Tuesday morning, but they failed to reach a deal that would have allowed for an orderly start to the session.

In the Senate, the first day went smoothly as members swiftly approved a power-sharing agreement negotiated in recent days between DFL Leader Erin Murphy of St. Paul and GOP Leader Mark Johnson of East Grand Forks and others.

The Senate approved Sens. Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, and Jeremy Miller, R-Winona, to serve as co-presiding officers of the body while they are in a 33-33 tie. The DFL is expected to resume control of the chamber after a special election on Jan. 28 to fill the seat held by the late Sen. Kari Dziedzic, DFL-Minneapolis.

Senators lauded themselves for the comity in contrast to the House. “Our commitment is to continue to work together,” Champion said.

Miller pledged to “preside with respect and dignity that Minnesotans expect and deserve.”

The most contentious point of disagreement in the House revolved around whether to seat Rep. Brad Tabke, DFL-Shakopee. Republicans contested Tabke’s 14-vote election victory in court after Scott County elections officials lost 20 absentee ballots in one precinct. GOP lawmakers had indicated they would use their temporary one-seat advantage in the House to elect a speaker and take control of committees for the next two years, and possibly refuse to seat Tabke.

Dakota County Judge Tracy Perzel upheld Tabke’s victory in a highly anticipated ruling Tuesday morning. But Hortman said Republicans still refused to agree to seat Tabke during Tuesday morning’s negotiations.

“They are trying to steal the election from the voters in Shakopee,” said Tabke from the Scott County Government Center on Tuesday, surrounded by voters in the district. “If any of our members had entered the Capitol today, all of these voters’ votes would have been revoked.”

Republicans weren’t satisfied with the judge’s ruling. Demuth said they are reviewing her decision and are looking at “all options.”

“We know that election contests can be judged by the membership of the House and we take that under consideration,” she said.

Both sides said they were open to continuing negotiations, but Hortman told the Minnesota Star Tribune last week that she expects House Democrats would return to the State Capitol on Feb. 3, after the special election for the Roseville-area seat presumably returns the chamber to a tie.

On the Senate floor, 19 members from both parties spent an hour giving personal tributes to Dziedzic, 62, who died of ovarian cancer in late December.

She served as majority leader for the 2023 session when DFLers had their most transformative session under the trifecta at the Capitol.

In teary and poetic comments, senators talked about Dziedzic’s kindness, honesty and willingness to lead without seizing credit or the spotlight. The late senator’s mother Pat Dziedzic watched from the gallery along with two of the senator’s siblings.

Sen. Torrey Westrom, R-Alexandria, talked of texting with Dziedzic while she was away from the Capitol undergoing treatment the past two years and said she could be defined by her kindness. “Get to know people as friends because it pays off,” he said.

First-term DFL senators Zaynab Mohamed, Clare Oumou Verbeten and Heather Gustafson were teary as they told of how she mentored and supported them.

Mohamed said Dziedzic told her not to worry about politics or noise, just “Do the right thing.”

She said Ddziedzic never stopped asking how she could help, even in her final month of life. “Life is short. Hug your loved ones. Enjoy it,” Mohamed said.

Sen. Matt Klein, DFL-Mendota Heights, read the poem “O Captain! My Captain!” written by Walt Whitman in 1865 after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. He likened Dziedzic to the president, as a transformative leader only here for a short time. “Now she belongs to the ages,” Klein said.

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