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By Ryan Faircloth

The Associated Press

Good morning. Minnesota's congressional delegation voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of a petition to release government files on deceased sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein. The state's four Democrats in the U.S. House had signed onto the petition early on, but it wasn't clear leading up to the vote where Minnesota's four GOP members would land.

The vote capped months of drama in the House over the release of the files, my colleague Sydney Kashiwagi writes. President Donald Trump shifted his stance this week and gave Republicans permission to vote for the petition.

“Jeffrey Epstein’s victims have experienced untold physical and emotional damage at the hands of powerful people. It’s these women, more than anyone, who deserve to know the truth,” Republican Rep. Brad Finstad said in a statement after the vote.

GOP House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said he decided to support the measure to let the "facts speak for themselves." Before Trump gave permission, Emmer had said he wouldn't vote on the petition or whip votes for or against it.

Rep. Michelle Fischbach, who previously rejected releasing the files multiple times from her position on the House Rules Committee, avoided Sydney's questions about the vote on Tuesday. Fischbach said in a statement Tuesday night that her vote was “consistent with my previous support for transparency on the issue,” citing legislation she co-sponsored that would have released the Epstein files.

Rep. Pete Stauber told Sydney he voted in favor of the petition for "transparency and accountability."

“The Oversight Committee investigation, I also supported. They have brought over 60,000 pages out to the public,” he said. Read more.

Third-party candidate enters Minnesota governor's race. Mike Newcome of Lake Elmo is hoping for a Jesse Ventura-style wave to carry him next year, my colleague Nathaniel Minor reports. Newcome, a business veteran with a family history in politics, is investing $100,000 of his own money into his campaign as he hopes to sell voters on his politically independent candidacy.

He's running with the endorsement of the Forward Independence Party, the political descendant of the organization that endorsed Ventura during his surprise win in 1998.

“My job over the next 12 months is to show them that this is a viable alternative,” Newcome said. Read more.

Democrats on Minnesota Senate Commerce Committee demand hemp fix. The DFL senators on Tuesday called for the state's congressional delegation to work toward a fix that would allow Minnesota's hemp-derived THC industry to survive. Their request comes after Congress approved a bill last week effectively banning hemp-derived THC products nationwide. The ban will take effect in a year.

"Minnesota is home to more than 10% of all hemp-beverage companies in the country, and these products have provided a needed boost for small businesses navigating a changing alcohol market," the senators said in a statement. "While our small business owners must brace themselves for the impact of this abrupt change, we will be fighting for a federal fix and doing everything we can at the state level to lessen the blow."

The state Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing early next year to understand the impact of the ban, the senators said.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is still on his European trade trip. On Wednesday, he's scheduled to participate in a Minnesota medical technology event, visit booths at the MEDICA trade fair, visit 3M Deutschland and meet with the Honorable Hendrik Wüst, minister-president of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, and Minister Mona Neubaur.

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The Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee will meet Wednesday morning to discuss fraud prevention in the state's paid family and medical leave program, which starts on Jan. 1.

The state Senate Select Subcommittee on Federal Impacts will also be busy this morning. Members of the panel will tour a Dakota County office to see the IT systems that are used to process Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications.