A special election is set next month for the vacant seat held by Justin Eichorn, the former Republican state lawmaker facing federal prosecution for allegedly attempting to pay a minor for sex.

Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday issued a writ of special election for April 29 for Senate District 6, a northern Minnesota district that includes Itasca, Cass and Crow Wing counties.

Eichorn left office last week as his Senate colleagues prepared for a vote to expel him from his seat. He remains in custody after his March 17 arrest on suspicion of soliciting a minor in Bloomington, which was part of a broader sting targeting underage commercial sex..

At least eight candidates plan to run for the seat — seven Republicans and one Democrat — and a special primary election is scheduled for April 15.

Candidates

Republican candidates include:

• Former state Republican Party Chair Jennifer Carnahan, who was elected mayor of Nisswa last year;

• Steve Cotariu, a Merrifield veteran and businessman;

• John Howe, a retired Grand Rapids veterinarian;

• Josh Gazelka, a Brainerd resident who is the son of former state Sen. Paul Gazelka;

• Doug Kern, a Brainerd business owner;

• Angel Zierden, a former Breezy Point mayor;

•And, Keri Heintzeman, the wife of House District 6B Rep. Josh Heintzeman, R-Nisswa.

Meanwhile, Emily LeClaire, a Brainerd resident who ran unsuccessfully for House District 6B last year, is running as a Democrat.

Senate District 6

Senate District 6 and much of northern and northeastern Minnesota have shifted toward Republicans over the last decade.

Eichorn won what was then Senate District 5 by a little over 1 percentage point in 2016. His leads grew to double-digit margins in subsequent elections.

In 2022, redistricting placed him in Senate District 6, which he won with nearly 64% of the vote to Democratic-Farmer-Labor challenger Steve Samuelson’s 36%.

The House Districts within the Senate District — 6A and 6B — are also represented by Republicans who won by similar margins in recent elections.

Candidates have from March 26 to April 1 to file for the office.

It will be the third special election in Minnesota this year and the second for the Senate. Eichorn’s resignation has changed the balance of the state Senate to 34 DFLers and 32 Republicans.

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