Pat Shortridge won the Minnesota GOP party chair election on the first ballot. He was up against Terry McCall and Todd McIntyre. He takes over for former chair Tony Sutton who recently resigned.

Some insiders in the Republican Party of Minnesota have been saying the group does not have to pay back nearly half a million dollars in legal fees stemming from the gubernatorial recount, but Politics in Minnesota reports former party chairman Tony Sutton signed a deal obliging the party to pay the debt. Furthermore, he says he cannot recall telling other party officials about the agreement.

St. Paul City Attorney Sarah Grewing said Friday that she won't pursue criminal charges against former Minnesota Republican Party chairman Tony Sutton for fundraising irregularities. The matter has already led to fines against Sutton and the GOP. Gerwig wrote in a letter to The Associated Press that it would be hard to prove Sutton was willfully violating a state law.

Minnesota Public Radio reports Sutton was giving out hundreds of thousands of dollars to contractors and consultants with close ties to the party even as donations started to slow. Now, with the state GOP struggling under $2 million of debt, leaders are worried donors large and small will take their checkbooks elsewhere.

Republican Tony Sutton's abrupt departure Friday night was announced via a note left on the social media network Twitter. Sutton says the past few months have taken a tremendous toll on him and his family.

Politics In Minnesota quotes sources saying the Minnesota Republican Party's debts reach to about $2 million. That's almost double a previous estimate. The debt comes from unpaid legal fees, an FEC fine and recent invoices that have ballooned the party's financial woes. The revelation comes on the eve of the state GOP electing a new chairman.

Minnesota's Grand Old Party has taken numerous hits recently as key party members resign and debt issues loom.

GOP leaders are urging party members to stay the course just hours after Tony Sutton's abrupt resignation Friday night. The party is more than $500 thousand in debt and facing a pivotal election year in 2012.