Minnesota Republicans – During a morning session of the Minnesota Republican Party’s convention in Duluth, delegates held a moment of silence for Derek Chauvin, drawing sharp backlash from Democrats who said it dishonors the courts and George Floyd’s memory—especially as the decision
For a few seconds inside the Minnesota Republican Party’s convention in Duluth, the room fell quiet for Derek Chauvin.
Delegates gathered for the morning session and, when a voice vote was taken on a motion for a moment of silence or prayer, many in the room could be heard yelling “aye.” The “nays,” by comparison, were far quieter.
“It wasn’t even close,” said state Rep. Danny Nadeau, who presided over that portion of the convention. Nadeau said he chose to make the moment of silence last only a few seconds—“the minimum amount necessary.”
Nadeau, whose district is in suburban Minneapolis, said he had told the delegate who proposed the moment of silence that he would prefer the delegate not pursue it before the convention began that morning.
“It’s not a good look, in my opinion,” he said. He also said he did not know the name of the delegate, who was among about 2,300 Republican delegates gathered to make endorsements in this year’s state elections.
The moment of silence drew immediate attention after Democrats began highlighting it, with the criticism landing in the days before the anniversary of George Floyd’s death.
“They cannot run from this,” said Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, a Democrat who prosecuted Chauvin in state court in 2021. Ellison said, “They either are OK with what happened or they’re going to denounce it. I haven’t seen one person denounce it. I haven’t seen one person say, ‘That was a bad, ugly thing.’”.
Chauvin was convicted in state court and pleaded guilty to a civil rights crime in federal court. He is serving a prison sentence of more than 20 years after he was convicted of murder in state court and pleaded guilty to a civil rights crime in federal court.
Floyd—who was Black—was killed in 2020 after Minneapolis police officers. including Chauvin. responded to a call that Floyd had used a counterfeit bill. Floyd defied the officers’ efforts to put him into a squad car. and in the ensuing struggle. Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly 10 minutes as he pleaded to be released and eventually stopped breathing. Horrified bystanders, filming on their cellphones, captured videos that were quickly seen around the world.
The delegate who proposed the moment of silence described Chauvin as someone “who should get a state retrial, who should get a federal pardon.” Audio of the delegate was recorded by The Minnesota Reformer, a local news outlet. His identity was not clear.
In the days leading up to the convention. Democrats accused Republicans of disrespecting the courts and Floyd’s memory. arguing that some conservatives have tried to reshape the narrative around Floyd’s killing. Some conservatives have also pushed President Donald Trump to pardon Chauvin for his federal conviction.
After the convention, Alex Plechash, chair of the Minnesota Republican Party, was asked about the moment of silence by a reporter for WCCO Radio. Plechash said there are “a lot of people, I think, that believe that Derek Chauvin was improperly convicted and not treated well.”
In an emailed statement, Plechash said the motion was “a spontaneous motion brought forward from the convention floor” and “was not a statement from party leadership.” He added, “To be clear, party leadership did not support this motion.”
Justin Malone, chair of the Republican Party of Otter Tail County, said he was busy getting his delegates seated at the time of the vote and had chosen not to weigh in. He said some delegates seemed caught off guard by the mention of Chauvin.
“It was overwhelmingly accepted,” Malone said of the moment of silence. “There was not too many people who said no.”
For Republicans in Minnesota, statewide victories have been difficult over the last two decades, even as the party has sometimes held majorities in the state Legislature.
Democrats, meanwhile, are defending the governorship and a U.S. Senate seat this year. Neither race has an incumbent running. Gov. Tim Walz. a Democrat. dropped out of the running for a third term early this year after facing criticism for widespread fraud of state social service programs that played out under his watch. The Trump administration used that fraud as part of its justification for an immigration enforcement blitz in Minnesota that led to three shootings. thousands of arrests and tense face-offs between federal agents and protesters.
At their convention over the weekend, Republicans endorsed Kendall Qualls, a businessperson, for governor, and Adam Schwarze, a military veteran, for Senate. Those endorsements are not binding, and voters can choose those candidates or others in the August primary.
At their convention, Democratic delegates endorsed Sen. Amy Klobuchar for governor and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan for Senate.
Schwarze declined to comment when reached by phone. saying he was not in the room at the time of the vote. Qualls’ campaign did not respond to emailed requests for comment. and neither did the campaigns of Speaker of the House Lisa Demuth. another Republican seeking the governorship. and Michele Tafoya. a former sportscaster running for Senate.
Democrats were already trying to make the moment of silence a campaign issue.
“Rather than a moment of silence to honor the service members killed this year in combat across the globe,” said Jason Heaser, a Democrat seeking Nadeau’s state House seat, “they chose a political stunt to honor a man unanimously convicted by a jury of his peers for murder.”
Minnesota Republican Party convention Duluth Derek Chauvin George Floyd moment of silence Keith Ellison Danny Nadeau Alex Plechash Kendall Qualls Adam Schwarze Amy Klobuchar Peggy Flanagan