Embattled Rep. John Thompson was expelled from the Minnesota DFL caucus following a vote Tuesday night.
The vote means that while Thompson remains in office, heh will not have access to party resources and he will not be a part of party meetings.
In a statement, the Minnesota DFL wrote, "Rep. Thompson’s actions, credible reports of abuse and misconduct, and his failure to take responsibility remain unacceptable for a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. It would be best for Rep. Thompson, his family, and the institution for him to resign. In the absence of a resignation, the Minnesota House DFL has voted to remove Rep. Thompson from the caucus.”
Thompson, who has been at the center of controversy all summer, remains in office despite a calls from Republicans and Democrats, including Governor Tim Walz, to resign.
WCCO Radio political analyst Blois Olson told WCCO Radio's Steve Simpson during The Morning News on Wednesday that moving to fully expel Thompson from the House would be a big step.
"All of the alleged crimes are before he was a House member," Olson said. "It's not activity or behavior that happened when he was in the House of Representatives. I think that's the fine line from making him leave the House completely."
Thompson turbulent summer began in July during a traffic stop in St. Paul where he accused police of racial profiling. Police pulled Thompson over for not having a front license plate, which is illegal in Minnesota. Thompson, who represents St. Paul's east side, gave officers a Wisconsin driver's license, which prompted questions about the district he serves.
Following the July traffic stop, Thompson faced questions about alleged domestic abuse incidents. Thompson was never convicted of abuse charges.
In statement posted to Facebook on Tuesday, Thompson acknowledged past mistakes and said he now has a Minnesota driver's license.
"Currently, some are saying because of the past allegations against me that I am not fit to serve in this legislative seat. The fact is, I don't have a hateful bone in my body for anything other than the blatant racism that is being displayed all over the world and that some play as though it does not exist," Thompson wrote. "Allegations about something that allegedly happened to me twenty years ago does not disqualify me from doing my job today. As a matter of fact, it only gave me strength to fight harder and help transform the communities I am fighting for."