Tough, whip-smart and selfless: Melissa Hortman, ‘singular force for democracy’, remembered

Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman in May 2025, in St Paul. Photograph: Ellen Schmidt/AP

A group of white male lawmakers were playing cards in a back room while their female colleagues gave speeches on the Minnesota house floor. They weren’t paying attention, and Melissa Hortman had had enough.

“I hate to break up the 100% white male card game in the retiring room,” Hortman said in 2017. “But I think this is an important debate.”