Is there an award to Governor Walz from the Satanists in the Minnesota capital building
Executive summary
A small plaque placed inside the Minnesota State Capitol by a Satanist organization thanking Governor Tim Walz has been reported by multiple outlets, but the item is a privately installed display — not a government-issued award — and was allowed only under the Capitol’s neutral-access policies rather than by gubernatorial endorsement [1] [2] [3].
1. What happened: a plaque, not a medal or official commendation
Reporting shows a satanic group installed a public display — described as a plaque — inside the Minnesota State Capitol that includes language thanking Governor Walz for permitting their presence and prior holiday displays in the building [1] [4] [5]; the coverage consistently frames the item as a privately mounted “thank-you” sign rather than an official state award conferred by the governor’s office or the legislature [1] [5].
2. How state officials characterize it: speech protected, not approved
The governor’s office has said Walz “does not agree with the display and did not approve it,” while defending the decision not to police speech in the Capitol on First Amendment grounds — a position reported contemporaneously in local coverage of the earlier holiday display that set the context for this new plaque [2] [3]. Multiple accounts note Minnesota law and Capitol policy require religiously neutral access when displays are permitted, which helps explain why the group was allowed to place its materials [1] [3].
3. Political response and framing: critics call it an endorsement, supporters call it pluralism
Republican lawmakers and conservative outlets used the plaque to argue that Walz’s tolerance amounted to tacit approval of a group they find offensive, urging removal or condemnation in public statements [6] [7]. Conversely, outlets and sources explaining the satanists’ intentions framed the display as an exercise of religious pluralism and free-speech rights, and the Minnesota Satanists said their presence was about representation rather than literal devil worship [3] [2].
4. How media and advocacy outlets amplified the story — and why narratives diverge
National conservative and religious publications treated the plaque as evidence of a moral or political failure by the governor [7] [8], while local reporting emphasized legal limits on government control of speech and the procedural rules that allowed the display [2] [3]. Some outlets used provocative language — “praises the governor” or “thanks the governor” — which can blur the factual distinction between an unsolicited plaque and an official award; the original reporting supports the former description but not the latter [1] [5].
5. Vandalism, public reaction, and the larger pattern
The satanic holiday display that preceded this plaque was vandalized and drew heated social-media reactions, demonstrating that the Capitol exhibits continue to provoke strong responses regardless of the group’s stated aims, and that the plaque is an extension of an earlier controversy over access rather than a new institutional honor from the state [2] [3].
6. What reporting does not show — limits to available evidence
Available sources document the existence of the plaque and public reactions but do not show any evidence that the plaque represents an official award, ordinance, or endorsement issued by Governor Walz or the state; none of the cited articles reports a formal ceremony, proclamation, or government-recorded honor tied to Walz [1] [2] [5]. The absence of such documentation in the provided reporting means assertions that Walz “received an award” from Satanists would be unsupported by the sources supplied.
Conclusion: direct answer
Yes — multiple reports confirm a plaque installed by a satanic group in the Minnesota State Capitol thanks Governor Walz for permitting their prior display and for the state’s neutral-access policy [1] [4] [5]. No — that plaque is not shown in reporting to be an official state award or endorsement from Governor Walz; the governor’s office has said he did not approve the display and that First Amendment rules govern access to the Capitol [2] [3]. Political actors and partisan outlets have amplified the story in different directions, with critics framing it as an indictment of Walz and defenders citing neutral-access and free-speech principles [7] [6] [3].