With the state primary election coming up on Tuesday, August 11, and early voting already underway, we wanted to share a quick preview of the key races to watch. If you are interested in following along election night in real time, Amy Frederiksen will be live and streaming online all evening at WCCO Channel 4.
Here are the major primary matchups to keep an eye on:
Statewide Executive Races
- Governor: On the DFL side, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar faces Kobey Layne for the nomination to succeed outgoing Governor Tim Walz. For the GOP, it is a three-way contest between MN House Speaker Lisa Demuth, GOP Endorsed candidate Kendall Qualls, and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell.
- Secretary of State (GOP): Tad Jude vs. Wendy Phillips.
- State Auditor (GOP): Nate George vs. Scott Jensen vs. Will Finn
U.S. Senate
- DFL: Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan vs. U.S. Representative Angie Craig (Competing for the seat currently held by retiring Senator Tina Smith).
- GOP: Adam Schwarze, Michele Tafoya, Royce White, and Tom Weiler are competing for the nomination.
U.S. Congressional Races
- CD2 (DFL): Former State Senator Matt Little vs. State Representative Kaela Berg vs. State Senator Matt Klein. (Seat currently held by DFL Representative Angie Craig, who is retiring from the House to run for U.S. Senate)
- CD4 (GOP): Paul Wikstrom vs. Paul Xiong vs. Gene Rechtzigel. (Seat currently held by DFL Representative Betty McCollum)
- CD8 (DFL): Luke Gulbranson vs. John Munter vs. Trina Swanson. (Seat currently held by Republican Representative Pete Stauber)
State Legislature
We are also tracking numerous competitive state Senate and House primaries, including a few crowded DFL fields in open seats such as SD50 (previously held by Senator Alice Mann) and HD55B (previously held by Representative Kaela Berg). We will provide the full results after Election Day.
Hennepin County Attorney
Anders Folk vs. Cedrick Frazier vs. Diane Krenz vs. Hao Nguyen vs. Matt Pelikan (Competing to succeed incumbent Mary Moriarty, who is not seeking re-election).