Controversial former chair of Minnesota Republican Party launches bid to replace Justin Eichorn
Plus, Ohio GOP advances effort to weaken child labor laws.
Following the resignation of former Minnesota state Sen. Justin Eichorn (R-Grand Rapids), Jennifer Carnahan, who chaired the state’s Republican Party from 2017 to 2021, announced she would seek the newly vacant senate seat. Einchorn resigned after being arrested on March 17 for soliciting services from an underage sex worker.
Carnhan’s decision to run is confounding, considering the context behind her resignation as the GOP’s Minnesota chair also involves child sexual assault. She stepped down as party chair after it was revealed that Anton “Tony” Lazzaro, a Republican operative and donor with close ties to both Carnahan and the Minnesota GOP, had engaged in sex trafficking with multiple minors. Lazzaro is now serving a 21-year prison sentence.
“Mr. Lazzaro targeted, manipulated, and sexually exploited young and vulnerable girls for his own gain without regard for their age or safety,” Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. said following the 2023 sentencing.
Carnahan, who is currently the mayor of Nisswa, Minn., distanced herself from Lazzaro
despite their close political and personal ties. However, Andy Aplikowski, the former executive director of the Republican Party of Minnesota, later revealed that this was a distortion of the facts.
In an open letter, Aplikowski said there were numerous examples of Carnahan being in close proximity to Lazzaro, and that his conduct had been brought to her attention.
"I think that any claim that she didn't have any idea what was going on and that she learned with the rest of us is patently false," Apilkowski later said.
Republican leaders in the Minnesota House would then request her resignation, as well as investigations into misconduct on the part of Carnahan. The letter alleged that a culture of sexual assault and harassment had fermented under her leadership. Other reporting from Politico and the Daily Beast indicated that in 2022, she was putting together a campaign to take over her late husband’s congressional seat weeks before he died of cancer.
“We are writing to implore you to take action immediately to investigate these claims, and establish a clear process for victims to come forward,” the statement read.
Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) officials were quick to respond to the announcement of Carnahan’s intentions.
“It's disgraceful that the Minnesota GOP might replace a Senator who resigned after a child prostitution arrest with a former Minnesota GOP Chair who resigned because of her ties with a child sex trafficker,” Minnesota DFL Executive Director Heidi Kraus Kaplan said.
The Republican-controlled Ohio Legislature is advancing an effort to allow 14 and 15-year-olds to work until 9 p.m. on school nights, despite current law implementing a 7 p.m. curfew.
Children that work between 7 and 9 p.m. would need approval from both a parent or guardians and from a school official.
The plan calls for changes to state and federal labor laws. The Senate Workforce Committee approved Senate Bill 50 last Tuesday, which alters current child labor laws in Ohio; the committee also approved resolution urging the United States Congress to do the same. Congress would need to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act, which was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938.
Before the bill passed out of committee 4-2 on party lines, with both Democrats on the committee voting against it, testimony was heard from liberal advocacy group Policy Matters Ohio. In opposition of the bill, the organization’s representative Heather Smith testified that the legislation opens a lane for employers and corporations to take advantage of children while stymying adult workers.
“Dismantling long-settled laws designed to protect children from abuse clears the way for corporations to access and exploit children in desperate situations, instead of paying livable wages that would attract adult workers,” Smith said in a letter to lawmakers.
State Sen. Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster), the sponsor of the bill and resolution, cited staffing shortages of employers in his district as the basis for the legislation.
SB 50 still needs to pass a full Senate vote and then in the Republican-controlled Ohio House of Representatives before heading to Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R) desk.