Minnesota Democrats are calling for a Republican state representative to suspend his reelection campaign after details of his 2008 domestic violence charges were publicized this week.

Rep. Jeff Dotseth, R-Kettle River. (Courtesy of the Minnesota House of Representatives)

Court documents from domestic violence charges against northeastern Minnesota Rep. Jeff Dotseth, R-Kettle River, contained sworn statements from his ex-wife and former step-son detailing what they said was a decade-long pattern of physical abuse and threats, according to a Star Tribune report published Monday.

Dotseth was arrested and charged with domestic violence. He was ordered by a court not to contact his wife, was ordered to give up his firearms and prohibited from visiting his daughter without supervision.

Dotseth denies allegations in complaint

In a statement to the Star Tribune, Dotseth denied the allegations in the complaint against him, noting he had submitted sworn statements disputing what had happened. He pleaded guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct and was not convicted of any domestic abuse charge.

While Dotseth was never convicted of domestic violence, DFL leaders on Tuesday called the allegations in charges disqualifying for office.

Minnesota DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin, left, and House Majority Leader Rep. Jaime Long, DFL-Minneapolis, speak to reporters at the Minnesota Capitol in St. Paul on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (Alex Derosier / Pioneer Press)

“Dotseth’s behavior, whether it was yesterday or years ago, was unacceptable and not fitting for an elected representative of our state,” said House Majority Leader Jamie Long, DFL-Minneapolis. “Being in elected office is a public trust, and this is a significant and severe violation of that public trust.”

DFL leaders also noted that at least one Republican — Rep. Paul Novotny, R-Elk River, knew about the allegations as he was one of the law enforcement officers who responded to the domestic violence call.

Long and DFL Chairman Ken Martin said they were aware of rumored domestic violence charges against Dotseth before they were publicized but did not know the details until this week. Martin said Dotseth should have been forthcoming about his past charges.

“The fact that Rep. Dotseth concealed that information from the voters when he barely won his seat two years ago, is outrageous,” said DFL Chairman Ken Martin said to reporters at the Minnesota Capitol on Tuesday.

Dotseth, a first-term representative, is running for reelection in House District 11A, which he won by under 500 votes in 2022. He faces DFLer Pete Radosevich again this year.

Before Doseth won the seat, DFL Rep. Mike Sundin of Esko held the district for a decade. District 11A’s borders have changed since its boundaries were redrawn in 2022, but it still includes the cities of Cloquet, Moose Lake, Barnum and the Fond Du Lac Indian Reservation.

In addition to calling for Dotseth to suspend his campaign, they said House Republican leadership should remove the representative from their caucus.

GOP response

In a statement to the Star Tribune, House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, said domestic violence is a disqualifying “red line,” but that the case had been resolved more than a decade ago without any convictions for domestic assault.

House Republicans did not respond on Tuesday to DFL calls for Dotseth to end his campaign or to expel him from their caucus.

In 2021, Democrats including Gov. Tim Walz called for Rep. John Thompson, DFL-St. Paul, to resign following the resurfacing of domestic violence allegations. Thompson had been arrested, charged or named as a suspect in six domestic assault cases in Minnesota and Wisconsin between 2003, but was never convicted. In some of the cases, he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct charges.

House DFLers eventually moved to remove Thompson from their caucus, and he did not return to office after losing a primary election in 2022.

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