House Republicans join their Senate counterparts in hanging the “No Wingnuts Allowed” on their leadership door. House majority leadership. Whereas radical right-wingers occupied at least six of nine positions in the 2025–2026 House majority leadership, including gubernatorial primary loser Jon Hansen as Speaker, the House GOP caucus Monday elected a slate of what looks to me like all solid mainstreamers:
House Republicans nominated Mike Stevens for Speaker of the House and Amber Arlint for Speaker Pro Tempore.
The following members were elected to majority leadership positions in the House:
- Majority Leader: Taylor Rehfeldt
- Assistant Majority Leader: Drew Peterson
- Majority Whip: Nick Fosness
- Majority Whip: Mellissa Heermann
- Majority Whip: Brian Mulder
- Majority Whip: Matt Roby
- Majority Whip: Mike Weisgram [Legislative Research Council, press release, 2026.11.09]
Boring government indeed, right, Nathan?
As in the Senate, the House whackadoodle caucus has been culled significantly. Phil Jensen will have less than a dozen hard-right nutjobs to applaud his outbursts.
Republicans chose all returning incumbents (repeat offenders?) out of their incoming 60 members for their leadership positions. Those leaders have just 22 absolute rookies—about 37% of their 2027 caucus—to whip into shape. The much smaller 10-rep Democratic caucus offers a faster ladder to leadership. With just three returning members, Democrats had to pick one of their seven incoming rookies—70% new blood in the House minority!—for one of their four leadership posts. The lucky winner there: new District 11 Representative-Elect Sonja Mentzer:
- Minority Leader: Eric Emery
- Assistant Minority Leader: Kadyn Wittman
- Minority Whip: Nicole Uhre-Balk
- Minority Whip: Sonja Mentzer
These House leaders start leading on January 12, the first day of the 2027 Session.