ST. PAUL — Minnesota Republican Party officials plan to discuss the party’s finances one day ahead of a meeting to elect a new chairman.

The GOP’s financial picture isn’t good, but it’s not clear how bad it is. Estimates of the party’s debt have ranged from $500,000 to as much as $1.2 million.

That debt is seen as one reason the party is choosing a new chairman. The last one, Tony Sutton, resigned in early December. Sutton has blamed much of the debt on legal costs associated with a recount of the 2010 governor’s race.