UPDATE: Democrat Senator Convicted Of Felony Burglary Announces Resignation

Goodbye!

As the WLT Report previously reported, Minnesota state Sen. Nicole Mitchell, 51, was found guilty of felony burglary after she broke into her estranged stepmother’s home.

After initially refusing to resign after her conviction, she has since changed her tune and will resign within the next weeks.

The Daily Caller reported more details on Sen. Mitchell’s resignation:

Democratic Minnesota State Sen. Nicole Mitchell plans to resign by early August following her burglary conviction, her attorneys said Monday.

In a press release published Monday by Minnesota Public Radio, Mitchell’s attorneys wrote that she needed to wrap up “outstanding legislative projects” before resigning no later than August 4. The lawmaker’s resignation announcement comes after a jury convicted her of burglary on Friday for breaking into her stepmother’s house, the Associated Press reported.

“Senator Mitchell’s constituents deserve for her legislative projects to be finalized or ready to hand off to her successor before she resigns,” her lawyers wrote in the press release.

Detroit Lakes police arrested Mitchell in April 2024 after Carol Mitchell, her estranged stepmother, dialed 911 to report a break-in at her home, Fox 9 Minneapolis reported on July 15. At the time, Detroit Lakes police found Mitchell in her stepmother’s basement dressed in all black and carrying a flashlight covered with a black sock, Fox 9 reported.

Following the verdict, Democratic Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy had said that Mitchell told colleagues that she intended to step down if convicted, saying “and I expect her to follow through on that pledge,” the AP reported on Monday. Mitchell had faced mounting pressure from fellow Minnesota lawmakers to resign in the aftermath of her conviction on Friday, the outlet reported.

BREAKING: Minnesota Democrat Sen. Nicole Mitchell announced she will RESIGN from her seat after she was found GUILTY on two felony burglary charges. pic.twitter.com/P4xM0hhBwI

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 21, 2025

There’s a catch to her resignation, however.

Take a look:

Burglar Sen. Nicole Mitchell's press release (from Moorhead, MN). If any of these tasks are not completed, she will not tender her resignation is the way I read it. Delay #2 TBD. pic.twitter.com/rn6H1goqcr

— Jake Duesenberg – Truth Hurts Show (@jduesenberg) July 21, 2025

AP reported that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz plans to hold a special election to replace Mitchell:

Democratic Gov. Tim Walz told reporters Monday he plans to call a special election to fill Mitchell’s seat “as soon as time permits.” He said his goal would be to give candidates time to organize their campaigns and then fill the empty seat before the Legislature reconvenes for its regular session in February. He said the likelihood now appears “relatively slim” that he’ll need to call a special session this fall to plug any holes in the state budget resulting from President Donald Trump’s federal budget bill.

Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson released a statement Monday pushing for Mitchell to resign immediately instead of waiting two weeks.

“Senator Mitchell was convicted of two felonies; she doesn’t get to give the Senate two weeks’ notice,” he wrote in a statement Monday. “The only reason Mitchell is still in office is because Democrats needed her vote to pass their agenda and refused to hold her accountable during session.”

Mitchell was arrested on April 22, 2024, and told police that she broke into her stepmother’s home because the stepmother refused to give her items like her late father’s ashes and other belongings. Mitchell’s father and stepmother Carol Mitchell had been married for 40 years.

Later on the stand, the lawmaker backtracked her statement and said she had not intended to take anything and wanted to check on the well-being of her stepmother, who has Alzheimer’s disease.