Minnesota lawmakers shift to 2026 races as Otter Tail County watches closely

Minnesota lawmakers left St. Paul with all 201 legislative seats headed to the ballot, and the shift from governing to campaigning is already rippling through Otter Tail County. With candidate filing opening May 19 and running through June 2, attention is moving fast toward the August 11 primary and the November 3 general election.

The 2026 legislative session adjourned May 18 after another year of razor-thin margins that gave election strategy unusual weight. The Minnesota House entered the session tied 67-67 after the 2024 election, and the Minnesota Senate began with a 34-33 DFL majority. In that kind of split government, every unfinished item becomes part of the next campaign argument, and the final stretch often rewards positioning as much as compromise.

That matters locally because Otter Tail County sits inside two districts already drawing early attention. Rep. Jeff Backer represents House District 9A, including Fergus Falls and parts of Otter Tail County. Rep. Tom Murphy represents House District 9B, which covers Perham and parts of Douglas and Otter Tail counties. Both seats will be on the ballot in November, along with every other legislative seat in Minnesota.

Otter Tail County’s estimated population was 61,041 on July 1, 2025, a reminder that the county’s voice stretches well beyond its borders in rural Minnesota debates over taxes, health care, fraud prevention and rural EMS. Those issues are not abstract here. They shape how quickly an ambulance can respond, how far county taxpayers are stretched, and how much room local governments have to keep services stable while state politics turns toward the next election.

The campaign calendar is already moving ahead of the voting calendar. In Senate District 9, local Republican delegates endorsed incumbents April 16 at the Bigwood Event Center in Fergus Falls, a signal that campaign season had already taken hold before the Legislature even gaveled out. County election information also places the general election on November 3 and notes that local candidates may file at the Government Services Building in Fergus Falls.

For Otter Tail County, the practical question is what gets left behind as lawmakers pivot. Session promises on taxes, fraud prevention, health care and rural EMS will now be judged against campaign messaging, and residents will have to decide whether their representatives spent the session solving problems or setting up the next vote.