Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman Had Two Children With Her Husband

Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, were shot and killed in their home on June 14, 2025. According to Fox News, the man who was arrested for the crime, Vance Boelter, impersonated a police officer. When the couple answered the door, they were shot. Melissa Hortman is survived by her two children, but who are they, and did they speak out following the tragedy?

Melissa served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for 20 years until her 2025 death. She served 11 consecutive terms, and she once interned for Sen. Al Gore early on in her career, per WVTM News. She reportedly fought for women's rights in the state of Minnesota, as well as free school lunch programs for kids.

Melissa and Mark had two adult kids, Sophie and Colin Hortman, who had to face a third tragedy after they learned about the death of their parents. According to the New York Post, Melissa's two children were forced to put the family dog down after he too was allegedly shot by Vance Boelter.

Although Sophie and Colin did not follow in their mother's footsteps politically, their respective social media accounts were supportive of her throughout her long career. According to Sophie's Facebook, she is an upper adolescent literature guide at Great River School in St. Paul, Minn. Colin's Facebook says he is a senior IT analyst and programmer at Mayo Clinic.

During the 2024 election, Colin shared multiple social media posts urging people to get out and vote.

In one post, he wrote, "Just vote folks. This isn't the place to debate who, if you want to share resources for how to register or how to vote, go ahead."

The family's love of dogs extends beyond their shared golden retriever and even the dog that Colin has shared on social media on his own profile. According to an Instagram post from someone involved with the Helping Paws Foster Home organization, Melissa was a dedicated trainer. The Hortman family helped train dogs for veterans.

"The Hortman family helped raise and train dogs to partner with veterans," someone associated with the organization wrote on the post. "One of the many reasons we will miss Melissa and Mark."

On the same post, someone commented, "As the wife of a combat vet with PTSD, I cannot tell you how their contribution to faithfully training these service dogs affects our vets. We are grieving their loss."

Melissa's husband Mark, who was shot and killed at the same time she was in their home, was not a politician, though he was often seen supporting his wife. According to LinkedIn, Mark was a program manager for nVent, an electronics manufacturing company in Minnesota that is dedicated to sustainable products.

Prior to that, Mark was a program manager for the software company Digital River. He also worked with the business consulting company Turnberry Solutions. Both Mark and Melissa are survived by their children.