But there was a caring, apolitical gracefulness as well to Hortman, colleagues said. Garofalo said that in the days after the 2022 elections, when Democrats took control of state

Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman was more than just the state House’s top Democrat, according to those who knew her. She “was a bright shining light of a human being,” Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon,

Hortman, who was fatally shot early Saturday, was known as a champion of deeply progressive causes but also someone willing to work across the political aisle.