Primary elections are on the horizon in Minnesota. Issues like fraud and immigration control are central to much of the posturing and debate heading into the Aug. 11 primaries. Here is what you need to know.
Information on voter registration as well as your local polling station can be found here.
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U.S. Senate
The most vitriolic primary race thus far has been the Democratic Senate Primary, as the two favorites, Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan and U.S. Representative Angie Craig, of Minnesota’s 2nd district, fight for the top spot. Both have taken shots at one another over hot-button political issues, including fraud and ICE. In a debate hosted by MPR, Craig said Flanagan refused to take responsibility for fraud in the state, a popular issue in Minnesota since the FBI busted Feeding Our Future for fraud in 2022. Flanagan skewered Craig for voting in support of the Laken Riley Act, which gave immigration enforcement agencies greater detention power. Craig says she regrets voting for the Laken Riley Act.
Both candidates have criticized each other for courting the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) for funding, though only Craig has accepted financial support from them. Attacks from one side to the other even escalated to accusations that Craig sent a third party to ask Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman for his endorsement while he was in the ICU after he was attacked by Vance Boelter. Craig has denied these claims.
On the Republican side there has been less hoopla. Adam Schwarze received the GOP’s endorsement but according to a poll from KSTP, he only sits around 5% of the vote right now. He is running against notables like Royce White, who has 10% of the vote in the KSTP poll, and former Sunday Night Football sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, who is the far-and-away leader at 41%. Much of Tafoya’s recent campaign agenda has focused on fighting fraud, further cracking down on immigration, and pursuing legislation to bar trans-women from women’s sports.
Governor
According to FiftyPlusOne, a nonpartisan poll aggregator, Lisa Demuth and MyPillow founder Mike Lindell battle for the lead in the polls for the Republican gubernatorial primary—Lindell with the edge in most polls—though neither won the GOP endorsement. Instead, Kendall Qualls was chosen for endorsement, but most polls show he still trails Demuth and Lindell, the latter having received the endorsement of Donald Trump. The three have largely centered their campaigns around stopping fraud and cutting taxes.
Amy Klobuchar, according to most polls, is the favorite to win both the Democratic Primary for Governor, as well as the Governorship itself. Klobuchar’s campaign has focused on combatting the Trump administration, particularly in its use of ICE in Minnesota, making healthcare more affordable, and as is tradition in this primary, rooting out fraud.
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Attorney General
Incumbent Keith Ellison is facing off against David Madgett in the Democratic primary for Minnesota Attorney General. Republican Ronald Schutz is running unopposed.
Ellison has received heavy criticism for his handling of fraud in the state, though he still has a slight lead in polling over Schutz, according to a KSTP poll.
U.S. Reps
District 1: Incumbent Republican Brad Finstad faces challengers Gregory Goetzman and Oliver Morlan, while democrats Alex Eaton and Jake Johnson duke it out on the other side of the ballot. According to polls from The New York Times,Finstad has the edge over Johnson if they were to face each other in the November election.
District 2: With Craig leaving her position in the house to pursue Tina Smith’s open senate seat, Democrats Matt Little, Matt Klein, and Kaela Berg have emerged as front runners for the nomination, with two polls from The New York Times, listing Little as the favorite, though the plurality of those polled were undecided. Republican Eric Pratt is running unopposed.
District 3: Democrat Incumbent Kelly Morrison runs unopposed for the Democratic nomination, while Republicans Tyler Bass and Jeremy Westby compete for nomination.
District 4: Incumbent Democrat Betty McCollum seeks reelection against Aswar Rahman. Gene Rechtzigel, Paul Wikstrom, and Paul Xiong seek the Republican nomination.
District 5: Incumbent Ilhan Omar has represented District 5 since 2019, and seeks renomination. Julie Le, Abena McKenzie, Latonya Reeves, and Nate Schluter are also running for the nomination. On the Republican side, John Nagel, Angela Marie Walls-Windhauser, Abbey Zieska, and Dalia al-Aqibi seek nomination.
District 6: Incumbent Republican and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who is recovering from a recent foot injury, seems to still be running away with the Republican nomination. He is challenged by former marine Mike Foley. Emmer has represented the district since 2015. Democrat Doug Chapin is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
District 7: Incumbent Michelle Fischbach is unopposed for the Republican nomination. Steve Carlson and Erik Osberg seek nomination on the Democrat side.
District 8: incumbent Pete Stauber seek nomination against Anthony Hamilton, as Luke Gulbranson, John Munter, and Trina Swanson make up the field of Democrats.
Secretary of State
Democrat incumbent Steve Simon runs unopposed in his primary, while Tad Jude and Wendy Phillips face off in the Republican Primary.
What else is on the ballot?
City council, school board, and County Attorney spots are up for grabs across the state. State House and Senate positions are also on the ballot.
Democrat State Auditor Julie Blaha is not running for reelection, leaving Zach Filipovich to run unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Republicans Nate George, Scott Jensen, and Will Finn fight for the top-spot on the other side of the ballot.
