Determinant identities for Laplace matrices

We show that every minor of an n×n Laplace matrix, i.e., a symmetric matrix whose row- and column sums are 0, can be written in terms of those minors that are obtained by deleting two rows and the corresponding columns. The proof is based on a classical determinant identity due to Sylvester. Furthermore, we show how our result can be applied in the context of electrical networks and spanning tree enumeration.