Moderate Democrat David Crowley won the Wisconsin primary for governor, defeating a democratic socialist who fell short of trying to deliver another win for progressives in a battleground state.
Fresh off of a resounding primary win, Amy Klobuchar spoke with MPR News yesterday about how she’s trying to chart a new course for the state’s executive office.
Since the beginning of her campaign, Republicans have sought to brand her potential win as another four years of Gov. Tim Walz’s administration. Klobuchar told Morning Edition host Cathy Wurzer that her approach to running the state would be more hands-on. “I'm not interested in the status quo,” she said, noting she wanted to see, “results, not excuses.” She reiterated a call to audit the state government upon taking office, should she win in November, along with a desire to cut red tape in the state’s permitting process. “I like to get things done, and to me, that means looking at all of state government and figuring out for the people how can we get this done?” Klobuchar said it
would also require “standing up to Donald Trump when necessary and working with their administration when there's common ground.” Klobuchar also committed to debating Republican Lisa Demuth ahead of the midterm. MPR News has a standing interview request out to Demuth and we hope to hear her on our air soon.
Republican Michele Tafoya told Wurzer that she’s ready to buck party establishment figures, including President Donald Trump, if she’s elected to represent Minnesota.
Tafoya told Wurzer the state has been embarrassed on a national stage due to decisions by Democrats in elected office here. And Tafoya said the state could use a GOP voice in statewide office to shake things up. “When I believe something is right, I will go with it. “When I believe something's wrong, I have the spine to stand up to it, and I'm going to do that,” Tafoya said. Asked about whether she would vote to end the war in Iran, Tafoya gave a noncommittal answer. “This is a regime that cannot have a nuclear weapon. At the same time, we don't want an extended, protracted situation where there are boots on the ground. But we have a lot of interest there,” Tafoya said. “We need to
protect and stand with our allies in the region, and I'm prepared to do that without a quote-unquote forever war and boots on the ground.” You can read more and listen to the conversation here.
Democrat Peggy Flanagan says her grassroots campaign has clearly resonated with people who are ready to have a check on President Donald Trump.
Flanagan, fresh off of her primary win in the DFL U.S. Senate contest, told MPR’s Clay Masters that “Too many folks are struggling right now, and I think a lot of folks are struggling due to the fact that Donald Trump is very invested in making sure that he does well and the billionaires around him, while working families are being left behind,” she said. Flanagan, who has the backing of progressive leaders like Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, said she believes issues like Medicare for all will appeal to moderate voters. “I think that this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to fight for, so that people again can afford their lives and pay for health care and not
just health insurance,” she said. Flanagan told Masters she’s happy to debate Tafoya — who also said she’s willing to debate Flanagan. You can hear the full interview here.
The major party candidates for Minnesota governor have different views on data centers.
Data centers can boost local revenue, but also increase utility costs. Demuth last month told All Things Considered Host Clay Masters she doesn't support a moratorium. "I have toured data centers that are long-existing here in Minnesota, and there's new ones going up. It is something that all of us rely on for the way that we now live and work,” Demuth said. Klobuchar said each city should be free to welcome or reject the centers. "The first thing is local control to allow the local residents to make decisions and not take that away from them,” she said. Klobuchar also said the state should ban data centers from making secret agreements with cities about proposed projects. A
bipartisan effort to limit those nondisclosure agreements failed this spring.
A swiftly corrected election reporting error from a northern Minnesota county led to an awkward moment for an incumbent Republican lawmaker Tuesday evening. All but one of 11 legislative incumbents facing a primary challenge in Minnesota prevailed in Tuesday’s primary elections. The exception, in unofficial results, was GOP Sen. Paul Utke in northern Minnesota, who was 192 votes behind GOP-endorsed state Rep. Mike Wiener. A
story published
in the Detroit Lakes Tribune reported that Utke won with all precincts reporting, but was later corrected to note his loss. A spokesperson for Todd County, one of the counties in Senate District 5, said in a statement that their election team “inadvertently uploaded an incorrect results file which was identified when balancing final voter counts to the paper reports. The issue was identified, reviewed by staff and submission of the revised results file was posted at 12:17 a.m. Due to this file error, there was a brief time where vote totals were not displayed accurately on the state website.” Utke didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Another statewide race with a contested primary was the race for state auditor, where former gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen defeated GOP-endorsed candidate Nate George.
“We made it clear from the start that we intended to go to the primary because every Minnesotan deserves the right to weigh in on the candidates who will represent them,” Jensen said in a statement. Jensen will face DFL-endorsed candidate Zach Filipovich, a former Duluth City Council member and an accountant, and Forward Independence candidate Jay Reeves, an Army veteran, in November.
Minnesota reported its highest ever number of ballots cast in a primary, according to unofficial numbers.
The Minnesota Secretary of State's Office reports that more than 1.1 million people cast primary ballots. That's up from the previous record set in 2018. Democrats accounted for at least 700,000 of those. Historically, this year doesn't live up to the state's turnout record when it comes to the percentage of eligible voters. The total was about 25 percent of eligible voters this year. Minnesota saw much higher primary turnout by percentage in the 1950s and 1960s. The numbers will be canvassed and certified next week.
The Minnesota Supreme Court rejected a case over the state’s witness certification requirement for absentee voting. The Minnesota Alliance for Retired Americans Educational Fund and two Minnesota voters who regularly vote absentee sued Secretary of State Steve Simon, alleging that requiring voters to get certification from a witness to vote absentee violates the Voting Rights Act and Civil Rights Act. The high court ruled that the requirement does not violate federal law.
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