The latest: Minnesota primary election

Former state Sen. Matt Little will carry the DFL Party banner into a swing-district congressional race that pits him against a former colleague, Republican Sen. Eric Pratt.

Little, also a former mayor, won a multi-candidate primary for the mostly suburban 2nd Congressional District seat. Rep. Angie Craig decided against seeking a new term to run for U.S. Senate.

Little had the DFL endorsement in a race against state Sen. Matt Klein and state Rep. Kaela Berg.

The 2nd District has swung between the parties over the past decade but Craig managed to run up comfortable wins the last couple of elections. Those races were expensive and open seats tend to draw more attention and money.

Two-term DFL Attorney General Keith Ellison beat Minneapolis lawyer David Madgett in the Democratic primary. Ellison will take on Republican Ron Schutz in November.

Ellison was first elected to the post in 2018. He previously represented Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District in Congress and a Minneapolis district in the Minnesota House of Representatives.

Democrats have held the office for more than half a century; in 2026 it will be 60 years since Doug Head’s last GOP win.

Cheers went up at First Avenue as Peggy Flanagan took an early lead in returns from counties.

Among her supporters was Dale Korogi, a friend of Flanagan and her family, who said he's feeling very good about her chances.

"Her campaign has done extraordinary work," he said. He added that her work to help marginalized communities really appeals to voters.

"I think people are very excited to see her kind of champion something new and something exciting."

Former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya scored a decisive win Tuesday in her campaign to move from the NFL sidelines to the U.S. Senate, gaining the GOP nomination in an open-seat race.

Her DFL opponent was still to be decided as election officials counted votes in the primary between U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan.

Tafoya cruised past Republican-endorsed candidate Adam Schwarze, former basketball player Royce White and others on her way to the fall ballot. She was the favored candidate of national Republicans who are aiming to put the Minnesota race on the map in a year when the party is playing defense elsewhere.

Republicans haven’t won a statewide election in Minnesota since 2006, but Tafoya hopes to appeal to enough independents to lift her in November.

Correction (Aug. 11, 2026): An earlier headline on this story incorrectly referred to which race Tafoya won.

The energy was mixed at the GOP primary election watch party at Jameson's Tavern in West St. Paul ahead of results rolling in as guests and party-endorsed candidates, some of whom face difficult primary odds, munched on wings and waffle fries.

Flanked by an American flag and the old state flag of Minnesota, state Republican Party chair Alex Plechash said he was proud to support a slate of veteran candidates.

With the exception of Adam Schwarze, the GOP-endorsed candidate for U.S. Senate, all candidates said they would ultimately support whichever Republican candidate wins the primary.

Supporters of Rep. Angie Craig gathered at Dual Citizen Brewing Company in St. Paul on primary night.

Craig is in an unprecedentedly intense and expensive primary race against Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan to replace U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, who is not running for reelection. Flanagan won the party’s endorsement in May but Craig pledged to stay through to the primary nonetheless. Both campaigns benefited from outside spending groups and attack ads.

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Linda Oi has supported Craig since she first ran for office in 2016. She said Craig’s work ethic has helped her pass meaningful legislation in an often polarized U.S. House of Representatives — and that work ethic will translate to the Senate.

“Angie has a ‘get it done’ work ethic, attitude,” said Oi. “She's smart. She's a fighter, and she knows what she's doing.”

Jim Johnson said Craig’s ability to work across the aisle shouldn’t be seen as a liability, but a skill because she needs to appeal to voters throughout Minnesota.

“We've seen her win in places that no one has won in a long, long time,” said Johnson. “She can represent the ‘burbs. She can represent the city, and the rural areas.”

Oi said she’s hopeful the DFL can come together behind whichever candidate wins a spot on the ticket this fall.

“I believe that we will get behind our candidate because we are not going to walk into the Republicans' hands,” said Oi. “We are better than that."

The ballroom at the Hilton in downtown Minneapolis is filling up with Mike Lindell supporters.

Speaking to reporters, Lindell said his campaign focused on reaching out to voters who cast ballots for Trump in the last two elections, but didn't vote in the 2022 primaries.

On election integrity, Lindell said "If there's anything we see, whether I win or whoever wins, we will call it out and say, 'open those up,’" referring to voting machines. Lindell said he would throw his support behind the Republican nominee if he loses tonight.

Amy Klobuchar’s bid to trade her capitol office in Washington for one in St. Paul moved forward Tuesday when the U.S. senator notched a decisive primary victory and the DFL nomination for Minnesota governor.

Klobuchar had only nominal opposition in her primary race. Republicans had a more competitive race to determine her fall opponent.

Klobuchar, a four-term senator, has amassed double digit wins in each of her past statewide races but the consequential governor’s race could prove closer.

The winner will succeed outgoing DFL Gov. Tim Walz.

Republican-endorsed Senate candidate Adam Schwarze said he won’t get behind fellow GOP candidate Michele Tafoya as the party nominee if she prevails Tuesday.

Schwarze, a former Navy SEAL, was hoping for a victory in a Republican primary that featured several candidates. He said Tafoya, a former sports broadcaster, is not principled enough to earn his support.

“I do not think I will be involved in Republican Party politics if I don't win this,” Schwarze said just before polls closed. “If you put Michele Tafoya and Angie Craig in a bucket and just pulled out their names, you wouldn't actually know which one's the Republican.”

Schwarze said he campaigned hard and is upset he was held out of a Farmfest debate. He said national Republicans worked against him.

“If I lose, it's not because we didn't do the right things,” he said. “It's just because we couldn't compete against the D.C. Goliath.”

Peggy Flanagan supporters are making their way into First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis — where the Minnesota Twins are also playing a game tonight. The iconic music club has MS Now on a big screen in front of the stage. Near the coat check, Flanagan supporters are building plates at a build-your-own nacho bar, and snacking on candied bacon and popcorn. Just after polls closed at 8 p.m. the crowd was starting to stream in more consistently.