Chances of special session to address gun violence, school safety slim to none, political science expert says

Expert: Special session unlikely

The chances of the Minnesota Legislature convening for a special session to address gun violence and school safety ahead of the regularly scheduled 2026 Legislative Session have become slim to none, according to a longtime political science professor.

Calls for a special session ramped up after the deadly shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church.

RELATED: Annunciation parents, community members advocate for gun law changes

At this point, it’s been more than two weeks since Governor Tim Walz and legislative leaders met to discuss the possibility.

On Sunday, 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS asked Hamline University Political Science and Law Professor David Schultz what he thought the percentage chance of having a special session at this point was.

“I would put it between about zero and about 20% at most,” Schultz replied.

Asked, “What are the odds that there was ever going to be a special session?” he said, “It was pretty low… I never really put it at much more than about a one out of three chance. So it’s gone down, but it was never a high probability to start with.”

The main reason, according to Schultz, is that Republicans and DFL lawmakers and Gov. Walz have been unable to agree on exactly what to address.

“So traditionally, what happens is that the governor and all the players in the Legislature reach an agreement that says, ‘Here’s the legislation in advance,’ ‘Here’s what we’re going to do,’” Schultz said.

“Everything has already been done. You come in, do the vote, and leave… None of that was in place when the governor was proposing the idea of a special session.”

The 2026 election cycle, including Walz’s run for a third term as governor, further diminishes the chance of compromise, especially around gun reform, Schultz added.

A few weeks ago, Tess Rada was among several Annunciation Catholic School parents who demanded action to address gun violence, specifically calling on lawmakers to pass a ban on assault-type weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The mayors of at least 10 metro area cities have also called for, or expressed support for those bans, and a recent KSTP-TV/SurveyUSA poll found 53% of respondents in Minnesota support a ban on assault-style guns.

That’s the hang-up at the Capitol, Schultz said, regardless of looming elections.

“Guns have become like the issue — like abortion in the United States, or abortion in Minnesota, where there’s just — the divide is just too great,” he said.

“There might be some agreement on issues such as mental health, a few other issues like that, or related points, but this is really an ideological divide.”

Gov. Walz told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS last week that he thinks some republicans could be convinced to vote for a gun ban, adding that, at a minimum, he would like it to go up to a vote.

At the time, Republican House Speaker Lisa Demuth said her caucus would need to see specific bill language before they could even consider debating and voting on a gun ban.
The post Chances of special session to address gun violence, school safety slim to none, political science expert says first appeared on KSTP.com 5 Eyewitness News.