Hundreds gather to remember prominent Minnesota lawmaker and husband slain in their home
Jun 18, 2025, 7:18 PM
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and his wife Gwen Walz attend a candlelight vigil for former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, who were fatally shot, at the state Capitol, Wednesday, June 18, 2025, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Nikolas Liepins)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
(AP Photo/Nikolas Liepins)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) 鈥� Hundreds of people, some clutching candles or carrying flowers to lay in front of a memorial, gathered outside Minnesota鈥檚 Capitol on Wednesday evening for a vigil to remember a prominent state lawmaker and her husband who were gunned down at their home.
As a brass quintet from the Minnesota Orchestra played, Gov. Tim Walz wiped away tears and comforted attendees at the gathering for former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, who were killed early Saturday in the northern Minneapolis suburbs.
Walz has described Hortman as his closest political ally and 鈥渢he most consequential Speaker in state history.”
Wednesday’s vigil also included a Native American drum circle, a string quartet and the crowd singing 鈥淎mazing Grace.鈥�
The memorial, which sprang up outside the Capitol after the killings, features flowers, American flags, photos of Hortman and sticky notes with such messages as, 鈥淭hank you for always believing in me and in Minnesota” and 鈥淲e got this from here. Thank you for everything.鈥�
Around the gathering, there was a heavy police presence, with law enforcement blocking off streets leading up to the Capitol and state troopers standing guard.
The event didn’t have a speaking program planned and attendees were instructed not to bring signs of any kind.
The man charged in federal and state court with killing the Hortmans, Vance Boelter, is also accused of shooting another Democratic lawmaker, Sen. John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, at their home a few miles away in Champlin. They survived and are recovering. Federal prosecutors have declined to speculate about a motive.
Boelter鈥檚 attorneys have declined to comment on the charges.
Hortman had served as the top House Democratic leader since 2017, and six years as speaker, starting in 2019. Under a power-sharing deal after the 2024 election left the House tied, her title became speaker emerita and Republican Rep. Lisa Demuth became speaker.
The Hortmans were alumni of the University of Minnesota, which held a midday memorial gathering on the Minneapolis campus.
Rebecca Cunningham, the university’s president, spoke during the event about the grief and outrage people are grappling with along with questions about how things got to this point.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have the answers to these questions but I know that finding answers starts with the coming together in community as we are today,鈥� she said.
Funeral information for the Hortmans has not been announced.
