ST. PAUL, Minn. – By resigning his state Senate seat, Justin Eichorn pre-empted a Senate vote to throw him out. Both Democrat and Republicans were prepared to expel the Gand Rapids Republican after his arrest in a police sex sting. The vote would have been the first expulsion in the 168-year history of the chamber. “There is no place in the Minnesota Senate for someone who engages in such abusive and predatory behavior,” Senate Democrats said in a statement. Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson called it “the right thing to do.” The Senate quickly removed Eichorn’s name from the alphabetical electronic vote tally board in the Senate chamber. His name was stripped from the online Senate list of members. Personal belongings in his Senate office, Room 2235, were boxed up for delivery who knows where. Eichorn’s departure left vacancies on these Senate committees:
> Education Policy.
> Environment, Climate and Legacy, of which he was co-chair
> Rules and Administration
> State and Local Government.