Minn. Sen. Amy Klobuchar Shares Her First Memory of Late Friend Melissa Hortman: ‘She Was the Best of Politics’ (Exclusive)

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar is remembering her friend Melissa Hortman two days after the former Minnesota House speaker’s shocking murder.

Klobuchar, 65, tells PEOPLE that her friend’s dedication as a citizen, mother and public servant are at the top of mind as she grieves the deaths of Melissa and her husband, Mark Hortman, who were both fatally shot in their home early on Saturday, June 14, in what’s been characterized as a “politically motivated assassination.”

Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, were also shot that morning, and the suspect allegedly visited two other lawmakers’ homes with an “intent to kill,” according to authorities.

Melissa and Klobuchar were close friends for a long time, the U.S. senator tells PEOPLE, and had even dined together at a political event hours before the shooting. The two entered state politics together, during which time they were both mothers of young children.

“My first memory of her is her door-knocking in this very working-class suburban area, and it felt like she knew everyone already in her district,” Klobuchar says.

But Melissa wasn’t just a state representative — she was raising two young children, leading a Girl Scout troop, teaching Sunday School at church and working at her father’s auto parts store, Klobuchar recalls.

Her ability to juggle so many responsibilities and interests was what made her a “stellar” state House speaker, the senator says, “because you’ve got to be able to work with people with a lot of different ideologies and interests.”

Klobuchar tells PEOPLE that Melissa used the House speaker position to pass a range of legislation benefitting children and families. This year, when the House was split 50/50 between parties, Melissa and her Republican counterpart, Lisa Dema, also a woman, established a “power-sharing relationship.”

Previously when she was the state House minority leader, Melissa notably broke up an all-White male card game that unfolded during Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s speech about the connections between Black Lives Matter and civil rights protests in Selma, Ala.

“She just was extraordinary and she was just such a decent person,” Klobuchar recalls of Melissa, adding, “When you hear about political violence and the numbers and what’s happening, I think all you have to do is look at her face and understand what kind of person she was and what this meant.”

Klobuchar says she was in disbelief on Saturday when she first heard the news of Melissa’s death, saying she’ll “always remember” the doorbell camera image of the suspect, whom authorities believe to be Vance Boelter, standing outside Hortmans’ home right before the murders.

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Klobuchar says that she hopes to see more people like her friend getting involved in government.

“Just when we’re at this divided time in our politics, she was the best of politics,” Klobuchar says. “She was the reason people should still run for office and should still believe in our democracy. And if there’s anything that people remember her by, I hope it’s that.”

“We need more good people to run,” the senator adds. “We need more Melissa Hortmans in government.”