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Kurt Daudt

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Kurt Daudt
Minority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives
In office
January 8, 2019 – January 3, 2023
Preceded byMelissa Hortman
Succeeded byLisa Demuth
In office
January 8, 2013 – January 6, 2015
Preceded byPaul Thissen
Succeeded byPaul Thissen
60th Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives
In office
January 6, 2015 – January 7, 2019
Preceded byPaul Thissen
Succeeded byMelissa Hortman
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from the 27B district
31A (2013–2023)
17A (2011–2013)
In office
January 4, 2011 – February 11, 2024
Preceded byRob Eastlund
Succeeded byBryan Lawrence
Personal details
Born
Kurt Louis Daudt

(1973-09-26) September 26, 1973 (age 51)
Springfield, Minnesota, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationUniversity of North Dakota

Kurt Louis Daudt (born September 26, 1973) is an American politician and former Minority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives. He is also a former Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represented District 27B, which included portions of Anoka, Isanti, and Sherburne counties in east-central Minnesota, north of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.[1] He lives on his family farm in Crown, Minnesota.[2]

Early life, education, and career

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Daudt attended Princeton High School, where he graduated in 1992. Rep. Sondra Erickson was his English teacher there. Daudt attended the University of North Dakota to study aviation management but did not graduate.[3][4] He is a licensed private pilot.

Daudt served as an Isanti County commissioner from 2005 to 2010. Before that, he was a township board supervisor for Stanford Township from 1995 to 2005, and a member of the East Central Regional Library Board. He was also a founding member of Project 24, a nonprofit organization that builds orphanages in Kenya. To date, the project has raised over $500,000 and built six orphanages.[1][5] Before his election to the legislature, he worked at auto dealerships as a salesman and business manager.[6]

Minnesota House of Representatives

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Tenure

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Daudt was first elected in 2010. After Republicans won a House majority in the 2014 midterm elections, Daudt was selected by Republicans to become Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives for the session beginning in 2015. Daudt was elected as Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives by the full House on January 6, 2015. Daudt is the youngest person to serve as Speaker since the 1930s.[7] He resigned from the Minnesota House on February 11, 2024.[8]

Committee assignments

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Daudt in 2013

Daudt served on the Elections Committee and the Rules and Legislative Administration Committee for the 2013-2015 Session. He previously served on the Commerce and Regulatory Reform, the Higher Education Policy and Finance, and the Redistricting committees, as well as on the Taxes Subcommittee for the Property and Local Tax Division.[1]

Accomplishments

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In his first term, Daudt proposed major reforms to Minnesota's welfare system including crackdowns on out-of-state use of EBT cards, limits on monthly cash benefit withdrawals, and eligibility disqualifications for individuals who purchase alcohol or tobacco using an EBT card.[9][10] The tobacco and alcohol provisions were signed into law as part of the 2011 Special Session Health and Human Services bill,[11] and restrictions limiting EBT use to states surrounding Minnesota were passed and signed into law in 2012.[12]

In 2016 under Speaker Daudt, the legislature approved a bill that made Minnesota one of at least 12 other states to fully exempt military retirement benefits from state taxes.[13] In 2017, Daudt and the Republican-led Minnesota Senate successfully negotiated the largest tax cut in two decades,[14] including a $750 million cut over ten years for social security recipients,[15] a $500 tax credit for student loan payments,[16] tax cuts for tobacco products,[17] and property tax relief for agriculture land.[18] Former Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton took the unprecedented step of attempting to veto funding for the Minnesota legislature in an attempt to reverse tax cuts passed by the legislature,[19] but none of the tax reductions were ultimately revisited.

Political Positions

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In December 2021, Daudt, as House Minority Leader, signed a letter along with 37 other Republicans in opposition of the Mayo Clinic for its vaccine mandate policy for employees, calling for a halt in state funding for health care facilities that fire employees "due to unrealistic vaccine mandate policies".[20][21][22][23]

Controversies

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In 2013, Daudt, then the House minority leader, was involved in an incident in Montana when a friend Daniel Weinzetl, brandished a handgun during the sale of a vintage vehicle, pointing it at the seller's "entire family, including the children." The handgun belonged to Daudt.[24] The altercation arose after Daudt and the seller differed about the condition of the vehicle. Daudt was later released by Montana police without being charged with a crime.[25]

In 2015, U.S. Bank and Capital One won legal judgments against Daudt, stemming from his failure to pay approximately $13,000 in overdue charges and legal fees incurred pursuing the money. However, the companies declined to pursue the judgments after the debts were paid in full.[26]

Personal life

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Daudt is a member of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. He is unmarried.[27]

Elections

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2020 Minnesota State Representative- House 31A[28]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt (Incumbent) 17960 72.84
Democratic (DFL) Brad Brown 6664 27.03
2018 Minnesota State Representative- House 31A[29]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt (Incumbent) 12326 69.08
Democratic (DFL) Brad Brown 5501 30.83
2016 Minnesota State Representative- House 31A[30]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt (Incumbent) 14815 70.33
Democratic (DFL) Sarah Udvig 6208 29.47
2014 Minnesota State Representative- House 31A[31]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt (Incumbent) 10,363 96.67
2012 Minnesota State Representative- House 31A[30]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt (Incumbent) 11,990 60.42
Democratic (DFL) Ryan Fiereck 7,823 39.42
2010 Minnesota State Representative- House 17A[32]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kurt Daudt 9,840 56.04
Democratic (DFL) Jim Godfrey 7,044 40.11
Constitution Paul Bergley 657 3.74

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Daudt, Kurt". Legislators Past & Present. Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  2. ^ Dec 21st 2014 - 11pm, Briana Bierschbach / MinnPost com |. "Daudt moves quickly up political ladder". INFORUM. Retrieved 2019-09-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Condon, Patrick (May 1, 2015). "Rookie House Speaker Daudt looks to defy odds at Capitol". Star Tribune. Star Tribune. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  4. ^ Richert, Catharine. "Speaker to be: The education of Kurt Daudt". www.mprnews.org. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  5. ^ "Kurt Daudt for State Representative". Daudt Volunteer Committee. Archived from the original on November 8, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
  6. ^ Kytonen, Rachel (November 10, 2010). "Kurt Daudt excited to begin next chapter in political career". ECM. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  7. ^ "Democratic doubts remain as Kurt Daudt prepares to lead Minnesota House". Pioneer Press. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  8. ^ Henderson, Eric (January 10, 2024). "Former Minnesota House Speaker Kurt Daudt resigns from state legislature". WCCO-TV. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  9. ^ "Bill Limits Cash Welfare Recipients Can Withdraw". 2011-03-23. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  10. ^ Hunt, Greg. "Daudt and Magnus propose welfare reform". hometownsource.com. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  11. ^ "Chapter 9 - MN Laws". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  12. ^ "Chapter 247 - MN Laws". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  13. ^ Press |, Kevin Burbach / Associated (2016-05-31). "Minnesota veterans won a major tax break in budget bill". Twin Cities. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  14. ^ "In State Budget Talks, Governors Play Hardball". www.governing.com. 26 July 2017. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  15. ^ Service, Don Davis | Forum News (2017-07-01). "Social Security benefit tax cut helps Minnesota retirees". Twin Cities. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  16. ^ "The Minnesota Student Loan Tax Credit" (PDF). www.house.mn. September 2017.
  17. ^ "Tobacco tax cuts burn Gov. Dayton". MPR News. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  18. ^ Sep 26th 2017 - 9pm, Helmut Schmidt / Forum News Service | (27 September 2017). "School districts benefit from new ag property tax credit for school bonds". Duluth News Tribune. Retrieved 2019-09-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  19. ^ "Dayton signs 10 budget bills and tax cuts, but defunds Legislature". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  20. ^ December 8th, 2021 Letter to Mayo Clinic signed by 38 Minnesota House Republican Representatives.
  21. ^ Bierschbach, Briana (December 16, 2021). "Minnesota House Republicans criticize Mayo Clinic for employee vaccine mandate". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  22. ^ Star Tribune Editorial Board (December 16, 2021). "EDITORIAL | Ethical decision is protecting patients". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  23. ^ Lopez, Ricardo (2021-12-16). "House GOP leans on Mayo Clinic to call off its vaccine mandate". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  24. ^ "Cambridge man convicted in gun dispute involving Minnesota House speaker". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  25. ^ Simons, Abby (January 13, 2014). "Minority Leader Daudt acknowledges being in gun-related dust-up". Star Tribune. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  26. ^ "House speaker confirms financial woes". KARE. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  27. ^ "Daudt, Kurt - Legislator Record". Minnesota Legislators Past & Present. 2010-11-30. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
  28. ^ "Results for State Representative District 31A". Results for State Representative District 31A. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  29. ^ "Results for State Representative District 31A". Results for State Representative District 31A. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
  30. ^ a b "Results for State Representative District 31A". Results for State Representative District 31A. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  31. ^ "Results for State Representative District 31A". Results for State Representative District 31A. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  32. ^ "Results for State Representative District 17A". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
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Minnesota House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from District 27B
31A (2013–2023)
17A (2011–2013)
2011–2024 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives
2013–2015 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives
2019–2023 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives
2015–2019 		Succeeded by
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