Republicans press Walz to give up emergency powers

Here comes the heat. Tomorrow will be mostly sunny, with highs from the lower 80s to the lower 90s. Tonight will be mostly cloudy with lows in the low to mid 60s. Friday highs in the 90s — and even near 100 in far western Minnesota with a repeat on Saturday.

The state’s two largest cities have now lifted their mask mandates, marking a major turning point in the COVID-19 pandemic.

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter made the move official this afternoon, signing an executive order paralleling the move by Jacob Frey on Tuesday — although Carter said he was reluctant to do so while vaccinations still haven’t reached what are thought to be herd immunity levels.

COVID-19 cases in Minnesota are dropping to levels the state hasn't seen in more than a year, even as vaccinations continue to slump.

The state reported just 128 new cases in the latest data. That number hasn't been below 150 for two days straight since the middle of April 2020, although the recent Memorial Day holiday and a change in data collection may be a factor in the decline in recent days.

The number of active cases identified in the state has also dropped below 2,500 for the first time in more than a year. That figure alone has dropped more than 80 percent in the last month, a sign of the rapid decline of cases in the state in recent weeks.