The last election resulted in the Republican Party of Minnesota winning a majority of seats, after losing a majority to the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) only two years earlier in the previous election.

The 134 members of the House of Representatives were elected from single-member districts via first-past-the-post voting for two-year terms.

Contested nominations of the DFL and Republican parties for each district were determined by an open primary election.

Write-in candidates must have filed a request with the secretary of state's office for votes for them to have been counted.

According to MinnPost, the Star Tribune, the Pioneer Press, and MPR News, a total of 25 districts were competitive.