Heartfelt tributes have poured in for former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, who were both shot and killed at their home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. The suspect, Vance Boelter, is currently in custody.
Minnesotans who knew her praised her as a “formidable public servant” and a woman deeply involved in her community.
State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, meanwhile, are on the road to recovery after they narrowly avoided the same fate when they were also targeted at their Champlin home. Boelter is also the suspect in that case.
Late on the evening of June 15, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced in a post on social media platform X, “We got him.”
Police officers detained Boelter, who allegedly disguised himself as a police officer during the shootings, in Sibley County.
Hortman’s Love for Community
Hortman, 55, served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for just over 20 years, leading her fellow Democrats in the blue-leaning swing state for much of that time.She and her husband Mark had two adult children.
Starting her career as a lawyer, Hortman won fame for her role in a case involving housing discrimination, winning a $490,181 civil award for clients in what was then the largest such judgment in state history.
Hortman got her start in politics interning for Al Gore and John Kerry when they were in the Senate. She was first elected to the state Legislature in 2004.
She became the Democratic leader in 2017, later being elected speaker of the chamber in 2019. She served in that post until this past January, when she stepped down after her party lost the lower chamber in 2024. In that election, Democrats won 66 seats to Republicans’ 67.
Hortman had already grabbed headlines for her role in leading an extended walk-out between January and February of this year, causing the Minnesota Legislature to be unable to form a quorum, elect a speaker, and move forward with legislative business.
The boycott ended on Feb. 6, after Hortman and then-Republican leader Lisa Demuth reached a power-sharing agreement under which Demuth would be named House speaker and Hortman would take the title of minority leader.
That lasted until March 17, when a Democratic victory in a special election led to a 67–67 tie in the lower chamber, causing Hortman to be named DFL Leader, a reference to the Democratic-Farm-Labor Party, and given additional powers.
“I did what leaders do... I stepped up and I got the job done for the people of Minnesota,” Hortman said.
She wasn’t fond of the provision related to health care, she said, but indicated she cast the vote to avoid a state government shutdown.
During her tenure, Hortman advocated for numerous projects, including a new commuter rail line and a new stadium for MLB’s Minnesota Twins, both of which came to fruition.
She was the minority leader of the chamber between 2017 and 2019, and this past February through March. She briefly served as the body’s DFL Caucus leader. She served as chairwoman of the chamber’s Energy Policy Committee between 2013 and 2014.
Following her death, tributes poured in: Walz called her a “formidable public servant.”
“I wish everyone in the nation knew her, [she] went into politics with little kids. That’s how I got to know her,” Klobuchar said.
“She was extraordinary. And so, when you hear about political violence ... you have got to look at the face of this woman and understand how real this is.”
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, who attended law school with her, said Hortman “was a bright shining light of a human being.”
“She never did any yelling, she did the listening.”
Freshman Republican state Rep. Keith Allen expressed his admiration for Hortman and how she conducted herself despite the two having been from opposite parties. Hortman sat just behind him over his left-hand shoulder on the Minnesota House floor.
“She was a very focused listener, she listened more than she spoke. She understood that politics was about relationships, and she knew how to be able to get people to work together. She also knew how to stand her ground when she knew the moment was right,” he told The Epoch Times.
Allen recalled the tie-breaking vote, which Hortman cast as part of a budget agreement.
He said that he told her, “I know you have a difficult job. I truly admire you for your leadership and courage it takes to make the difficult decisions you have to make. I really admire you for that.”
Allen said that his “only regret“ is that he ”didn’t get more time to talk with her and learn more.”
“She has left her mark on the Minnesota legislature,” Allen said.
Hoffman, 60, has been in the Minnesota Senate since 2013. Currently in his fourth term, he serves as chairman of the Human Services Committee. Like Hortman, he’s a member of the DFL Party.
He has a prominent role on a Senate committee overseeing human resources spending, serving on the Energy, Utilities, Environment, and Climate Committee; the Environment, Climate, and Legacy Committee; and the Health and Human Services Committee.
He was born in Casper, Wyoming, in 1965 and attended Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota.
During his time in the Legislature, Hoffman has supported giving health care to illegal immigrants. The state Legislature has since passed a bill eliminating that benefit. Like Hortman, Hoffman went against his party to pass the bill through the state Senate.
Both Hoffman and his wife are expected to survive their injuries sustained in the attack.
