Minnesota political conventions 2026: DFL, GOP pick candidates

Minnesota Republicans endorsed former health executive Kendall Qualls for governor, overcoming a glitchy daylong convention plagued by problematic vote clickers that left some rivals doubting the process.

Saturday’s nod makes Qualls the first black candidate to win a major party endorsement for governor in Minnesota. He won on a 10th ballot, surpassing the 60 percent threshold in a head-to-head showdown over lone remaining opponent, House Speaker Lisa Demuth.

The field had been narrowed from a starting crop of six.

Qualls will still have to overcome some in an August primary, with MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell pledging to move forward and spend a lot of money to try to wrest the endorsement.

Demuth also raised questions about the integrity of the electronic voting technology after “inconsistencies” were tracked earlier in the day, suggesting she could move to a primary, as well.

Democrats are almost certain to nominate their endorsed candidate, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar. She won the DFL nod early Saturday on that convention’s first ballot.

Kendall Qualls again came within a sliver of clinching the Republican Party endorsement in the race for governor on Saturday night.

On an eighth ballot, the businessman received 59.1% of the vote, while House Speaker Lisa Demuth received 38.5%. A ninth ballot was expected to take place Saturday evening.

The vote came after reports of “inconsistencies” with voting technology earlier in the day. An August primary is also expected in the race.

Businessman Kendall Qualls inched closer to the 60 percent threshold needed for endorsement on a seventh ballot Saturday night as Minnesota Republicans sought to endorse a candidate for governor.

After a long delay in voting, Qualls received 57.2% of the vote compared to House Speaker Lisa Demuth’s 39.7%. The two were the final candidates after delegates narrowed the pool from six candidates.

Delegates planned to cast an eighth ballot Saturday night.

Demuth and others raised questions about the integrity of the result after party leaders delayed voting for hours after “inconsistencies” with the electronic voting devices were detected.

Efforts to suspend the rules to allow the delegates to take up a motion to bypass an endorsement in the governor’s race failed. Several people also proposed voting on paper ballots, but that also came up short.

Rep. Danny Nadeau, R-Rogers, co-chaired the convention and told delegates that officials detected issues on a sixth ballot.

“We were having problems with the system, and so I'm not saying that there's errors in here, but these were two anomalies,” Nadeau said.

Demuth and her supporters said the glitches gave them pause about the election outcome.

“Election integrity matters, even when it comes down to something as broken as a system as this. Election integrity matters. There is no confidence in what is happening,” Demuth said ahead of the vote.

Qualls said the delay and the question about the integrity of the vote were a pretext for Demuth to bypass the endorsement process and move to a primary.

“The corrupt St. Paul swamp, the establishment we've been talking about, want to protect themselves, because it's been a two-hour delay,” Qualls said. “They can play with all the shenanigans and all the things they want. These clickers were working for all day yesterday for every candidate.”

Several candidates have already said they intend to move on to an August primary.

Voting has come to a halt in the Republican Party contest for the governor’s endorsement after “inconsistencies” in the results from electronic voting technology.

Delegates took a second vote on a sixth round after officials reported issues. More than 30 minutes after results of that second attempt were expected, party leaders called a recess.

Gubernatorial hopefuls Lisa Demuth, the Minnesota House speaker, and businessman Kendall Qualls were the two candidates remaining on that ballot after other contenders failed to meet thresholds for staying in the contest. The endorsement is the last statewide race remaining for Republicans holding their convention in Duluth.

Without a resolution in the technology, additional votes could move to paper balloting. Some delegates sought to cast all votes via paper ballot Friday but came up short.

Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow and a skeptic of electronic voting technology, made it to the fourth ballot but then was dropped due to party rules.

“Why would they not want paper ballots?” Lindell asked. “It's a hidden agenda, and it's either some of them are a personal agenda, some of them I believe are afraid. They're afraid because you know the powers that be, or whatever's behind it.”

He said he’ll move on to an August primary and remains focused on challenging DFL gubernatorial candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November.

“I'm running against Amy Klobuchar. This is my mindset. It has been since February,” Lindell said. “This is a waste of money for all summer.”

Businessman Kendall Qualls took the lead in the contest for the Republican Party endorsement for governor Saturday on the fifth ballot.

Qualls and House Speaker Lisa Demuth were the two candidates on the ballot and were set to move forward to a sixth ballot. Qualls garnered 49.9 percent of the vote on the ballot while Demuth picked up 46 percent. The remainder voted no endorsement or no preference.

The threshold to clinch the endorsement is 60 percent of the vote.

No matter who emerges as the winner, the contest is likely not over as other candidates have said they’ll move to an August primary.

Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is the DFL-endorsed candidate for the U.S. Senate.

Delegates at the party convention in Rochester enthusiastically endorsed her by acclamation on Saturday afternoon.

“I am deeply humbled and grateful to earn the support of DFLers all across Minnesota who believe that my leadership is what this moment demands," Flanagan said.

Months ahead of the party convention, the endorsement was shaping up to be one of the bigger battles of the 2026 election year, but Rep. Angie Craig announced days before the convention she’d skip the convention and take the race to the primary.

“This DFL endorsement process matters because it's one of the few places in politics where grassroots organizing matters more than money," Flanagan said, getting loud cheers.

Sen. Tina Smith, whose seat Flanagan is running for, stood on stage to endorse her.

“Minnesotans, I know what this job takes,” Smith said. “We are ready for leaders that demand change, and that is why there is no better leader for this moment than Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan.”

Flanagan has served as lieutenant governor during Gov. Tim Walz’s two terms starting in 2019. Before that she was a member of the Minnesota House and the Minneapolis School Board.

A member of the White Earth Nation, Flanagan would be the first Native American U.S. Senator for Minnesota.

Flanagan had focused her message on affordability, access to health care, and fighting against corporate interests in Washington.

Craig said the endorsement process “just doesn’t reflect the full scope of the party that we are and the purple state that we have become.” During her announcement, she said, “The only way we save democracy is through democracy, where every voice is heard, not just a few.”

That move was not popular among many of the DFL faithful in Rochester.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth and businessman Kendall Qualls will move on to a fifth round of balloting at the Minnesota Republican convention.

Both are vying for the party’s endorsement in the race for governor.

On a fourth ballot, Demuth received 42.4 percent of the vote while Qualls got 35.8 percent. Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow, received 21.4 percent. He won’t move on to the next round as the party rules stipulate only the top two vote getters continue after the fourth ballot.

The threshold to get the endorsement is 60 percent.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth widened her narrow lead in a third round of voting for the Minnesota Republican Party’s endorsement for governor.

Demuth picked up 41.5 percent of the vote compared to businessman Kendall Qualls’ 35.8 percent and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell’s 22.1 percent. All three will move on to a fourth round of balloting.

The threshold to win the endorsement is 60 percent. Candidates are again expected to address delegates before the next vote Saturday afternoon.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth maintained a narrow lead Saturday afternoon in a second round of balloting for the Republican Party’s endorsement for governor.

Demuth led the field with Businessman Kendall Qualls. Demuth has 35.5 percent on the second ballot compared to Quall’s 33.7 percent. It takes 60 percent to win the nomination.

Mike Lindell and Patrick Knight came in third and fourth on the second ballot, respectively.

A third round of balloting will start shortly after the remaining candidates address the delegates for a second time.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth came out ahead in a first round of balloting in the race for the Minnesota Republican Party’s endorsement for governor.

Businessman Kendall Qualls and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell rounded out the top three in the six-person field. A candidate needs to hit 60 percent of votes cast to win the endorsement. Additional votes are expected Saturday afternoon.

The bottom two candidates – John Krhin and Phillip Parrish – will be dropped heading into the second ballot. Demuth, Qualls and Lindell will advance, along with Patrick Knight.

The endorsement likely won’t end the race on the Republican side. Several candidates have said they’ll move on to an August primary contest.

Minnesota Republicans are considering whom to endorse in the race for governor Saturday morning in Duluth.

Six candidates are contending for the endorsement: House Speaker Lisa Demuth, businessman Kendall Qualls, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, Phillip Parrish, Minister John Krhin and food processing company CEO Patrick Knight.

As the candidates spoke to delegates, Demuth said that in her role as speaker of the tied Minnesota House, she’d blocked gun restrictions and limited state spending. She pitched the delegates on her campaign to “de-Walz” the state referring to the changes Gov. Tim Walz made during his two terms in office.

“Today you're going to hear a lot about labels such as an insider or an outsider. Well, labels don't win elections, actions and results do,” Demuth said. “And I am the only candidate for governor that's a tested fighter and proven winner.

Kendall Qualls, a businessman, told delegates he could wipe out fraud in state programs. He urged Republicans to join him in the “rescue mission.”

“Will we finally end 20 years of statewide defeat? We’ve tried politician after politician, insider after insider,” Qualls said. “People from around the country are hoping that we summon the courage to try something different, choose a different type of leader, a political outsider.”

Mike Lindell, a staunch ally of President Donald Trump, told the crowd that he was an anti-establishment candidate. And he said that his national network could help break a statewide office losing streak for Minnesota Republicans.

“One of the excerpts in my book says, ‘I dedicate the book to all of you needing hope.’ Well, right now we know Minnesota is looking for hope,” Lindell said, noting he’d purchased copies of his autobiography for more than a thousand delegates.

“Picking an established candidate has not won in 24 years. We have to win now,” he continued. “People have told me they're leaving Minnesota if we don't win this time.”

Phillip Parrish accused Democrats of “thieving and grifting” while in control of state government. He said his campaign could help reset the state.

“The message is very clear. This is not about right and left anymore. This is about right versus wrong,” Parrish told the delegates.

Minister John Krhin leaned into his faith as he made his pitch.

“By God's grace, I will lead this charge and do my best to lead Minnesota. By God's light, please prayerfully cast your vote for the nomination for John Krhin,” he said.

His backers held up flashlights shrouded with paper that looked like lanterns as Krhin closed out his remarks.

Patrick Knight, CEO of a food processing company, said he’d use his business and military background serving in the Marines, if elected.

“I made hard decisions and delivered meaningful results, and that's what we need now, not a politician, not a manager, not a personality. A leader will work with you to turn this state around and get us back on track,” Knight said. “After 20 years in the wilderness, it's time for the Republicans to step up and lead this state.”

Votes are expected Saturday afternoon.

After a late night endorsing candidates for governor, attorney general and secretary of state, Democrats have gathered for day two of their convention in Rochester Saturday, and are expected to endorse Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan for U.S. Senate later in the day.

Second Congressional District Rep. Angie Craig decided earlier this week to skip the convention, setting up a primary battle with Flanagan in August.

They’re both vying to replace Sen. Tina Smith, who has held her seat since 2018 when she was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to replace fellow DFLer Al Franken, who resigned from office.

Smith announced last year that she was retiring, setting up a fierce battle between Democrats for the open seat.

Smith gave opening remarks on day two of the convention. She encouraged delegates to unify around an endorsement.

“Your endorsement matters,” she said. “I truly believe we will have a Democratic Majority in the U.S. House, and the U.S. Senate and in St. Paul.”

Smith has endorsed Flanagan in the race.

Smith also offered a remembrance for Melissa Hortman, the former Minnesota House Speaker who was assassinated along with her husband Mark nearly a year ago. When her male legislative counterparts interrupted and ignored female members on the House floor, Hortman memorably told male legislators she wouldn’t apologize for standing up for them.

“I am not apologizing for speaking truth to power,” Smith said to a cheering crowd, echoing Hortman’s floor speech. “I won’t apologize for standing up to protect the Boundary Waters…I won’t apologize for expanding access to health care. I won’t apologize for fighting for every single person in this state.”

At their convention in Duluth on Friday Republicans endorsed former Navy SEAL Adam Schwarze for the Senate seat, but former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya said she will challenge him in the August primary for the party nomination.

Other speakers at the DFL convention Saturday will include Minnesota Democratic Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, 5th Congressional District Rep. Ilhan Omar, and Jake Johnson, a teacher from Rochester who is running to unseat First Congressional District Rep. Brad Finstad.

The convention will also consider an endorsement in the State Auditor race. The candidates are Dan Wolgamott, Zach Filipovich and Adam Jennings.

The endorsement process for the Senate race was expected to start around noon, though the convention got a late start as delegates moved slowly through security lines.

Political party delegates moved into their second day of deciding who they favor for key races in top Minnesota races after marathon sessions Friday that made Amy Klobuchar the DFL-endorsed candidate for governor and Adam Schwarze the GOP-endorsed choice for U.S. Senate.

The twin conventions — Democrats in Rochester and Republicans in Duluth — are aimed at bringing clarity to top contests facing Minnesota voters this fall. But both parties are bracing for competitive summer primaries to officially select nominees.

Klobuchar, a four-term U.S. senator, won a first-ballot endorsement for governor early Saturday morning after DFL delegates hashed out whether she is progressive enough to solidify the party base. She is seeking to extend the party’s hold on an office the DFL has now held for 16 years.

The endorsement came after 12:30 Saturday morning after Klobuchar won 67 percent of the vote.

“With your support I will be the first woman to be elected governor of Minnesota,” Klobuchar said.

The party’s left flank sent a clear sign they would like her to adopt some more progressive stances. Some pushed for another candidate, Kobey Layne, to be nominated for endorsement. That gave both Layne and Klobuchar the opportunity to speak at the convention.

“I am running for every community that is tired of being harmed at the hands of our government, tired of being harmed by elected leaders who side with big money instead of the people,” Layne said.

Republicans hoped Saturday to sort out who will face Klobuchar — or at least carry the party’s backing into a likely August primary.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth and former healthcare executive Kendall Qualls are seen as the top contenders for the endorsement. Both said they would leave the race if another candidate wins at the convention. But other candidates, including MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, have vowed to press forward no matter what delegates decide.

Republicans are almost certain to have a competitive U.S. Senate primary as well.

Schwarze, a former Navy SEAL, scored a sixth-ballot victory in that endorsement race on Friday. He prevailed over a field of a half-dozen candidates that included Michele Tafoya, a former radio and TV sports broadcaster. She has the backing of top national Republicans and intends to take her case to primary voters.

In accepting the endorsement, Schwarze said he would power forward with his eyes on November.

“You don't have to compromise on values. We can hold life. We can support our Second Amendment rights. We can support our First Amendment rights. We don't have to compromise on this race,” he said in his acceptance speech.

DFLers are sure to have their own primary to determine a nominee for the seat that Democratic Sen. Tina Smith will leave after this term.

In Rochester, they’re almost certain to give the endorsement to Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. That’s because U.S. Rep. Angie Craig opted to skip the convention altogether and go directly to the primary.

Several other statewide offices are on this years ballot. Democrats are seeking to hold the attorney general, secretary of state and auditor’s offices while Republicans want to pull off their first statewide victory in any race since 2006.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar is the DFL endorsed candidate for governor.

The endorsement came after 12:30 Saturday morning on the first ballot at the party’s convention in Rochester. Klobuchar won 67 percent of the vote.

Klobuchar’s endorsement victory came as no surprise. She has been the clear party favorite since she entered the race shortly after Gov. Tim Walz chose to end his bid for a third term in January.

Klobuchar, a four-term senator, has strong name recognition, has won each of her elections with strong margins and - some Democrats believe - has the ability to win over independent and centrist Republicans.

But the progressive wing of the DFL delegation at the convention in Rochester sent a clear sign they would like her to adopt some more progressive stances. Some progressives pushed for another candidate, Kobey Layne, to be nominated for endorsement. That gave both Layne and Klobuchar the opportunity to speak at the convention.

“I am running for every community that is tired of being harmed at the hands of our government, tired of being harmed by elected leaders who side with big money instead of the people,” Layne said. “Our elected leaders need to state their loyalty, are they aligned with big money or are they with the people? Because they can't be both. My allegiance is to our working class communities every day.”

Layne got a strong round of applause on the convention floor after her speech, in which she outlined a progressive platform.

Klobuchar made the case that she has been working for change throughout her public career.

“I know that we do not agree on everything, but what we do agree on is that in our state we must believe in our future, and we must believe in our freedoms, and we must believe in our progress. I will campaign with tenacity and optimism,” Klobuchar said. “I will do my job without fear or favor. I will be fearless for Minnesota. I will stand my ground for Minnesota. I will be accountable to Minnesota.”

After the speeches, Klobuchar easily won the endorsement.

“With your support I will be the first woman to be elected governor of Minnesota,” Klobuchar said.

Shortly after endorsing Klobuchar, the delegates endorsed Secretary of State Steve Simon’s reelection bid on a voice vote.

Earlier in the night Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison received the DFL endorsement for his reelection campaign.

Ellison has held the office since 2019. Before that he represented Minnesota’s 5th District in Congress.

Ellison, a popular leader in the DFL, sailed easily to the endorsement after being nominated by Klobuchar and Sen. Tina Smith.

Ellison said he would continue to fight the Trump administration

“I believe our country is facing threats to basic democratic rule,” he said. “I think the attorney general's office has an important and critical role to play to defend the rule of law, to stand up for our state sovereignty, and to stand up for civil and human rights for everybody in our state. So I'm going to continue to do that.”

Republicans are holding their state convention in Duluth. They are expected to endorse a candidate for governor on Saturday.

Former Navy SEAL Adam Schwarze locked up the Minnesota Republican Party endorsement in the race for U.S. Senate Friday night on a sixth ballot.

Schwarze broke the threshold to clinch the endorsement over former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya, with 62 percent of the vote. Six candidates initially entered the race.

Schwarze said he would continue the fight to the November election and would work to support candidates down the ballot.

“You don't have to compromise on values. We can hold life. We can support our Second Amendment rights. We can support our First Amendment rights. We don't have to compromise on this race,” he said in his acceptance speech.

Tafoya has said she expected to move to a primary race in August and bring the contest before a broader pool of Republicans. She didn’t immediately say whether that was still her plan Friday following the result.

Republican delegates endorsed Nate George for state auditor with a single round of voting, rejecting 2022 gubernatorial candidate Dr. Scott Jensen. Tad Jude won the party endorsement for secretary of state after two rounds of voting. Earlier in the day trial lawyer Ron Schutz won the party’s endorsement for attorney general after running unopposed.

The convention is expected to endorse a candidate for governor on Saturday.

Adam Schwarze remained the frontrunner in the fourth round of balloting Friday night with Michele Tafoya and Royce White hanging on in the top three as the state Republican Party aimed to pick a candidate to endorse in the U.S. Senate race.

Under the party’s rules, only the top two emerge after four rounds of voting, which means White, the party’s nominee for Senate two years ago, will not advance to a fifth ballot.

The threshold to get the endorsement is 60 percent of all ballots cast. Falling short of that, the top two candidates – Schwarze and Tafoya – moved on to a fifth ballot. Additional speeches were expected from each.

Here’s a breakdown of the vote totals from the fourth ballot:

• Schwarze - 809

• Tafoya - 603

• White - 448

• No endorsement - 8

• No preference - 4

Some progressive Democrats and members of the trans community are urging delegates to allow DFL gubernatorial candidate Kobey Layne’s nomination to be accepted at the DFL state convention.

The likely path for that would be delegates from every congressional district to second the nomination.

For Rep. Leigh Finke, DFL-St. Paul, it would be an important show of support from the DFL for the trans community.

“We have a strong state for trans protections. We have many, many thousands of trans people who live in the state of Minnesota, and I want to support a candidate for governor who is vocal and clear about protecting trans people,” she said.

Finke said it would be historic as well for the party to nominate a trans-identifying gubernatorial candidate.

“I also believe that every process is better when you have trans and queer people on the stage and participating, this would be a historic moment for our community,” Finke said. “If Kobey is up there giving a speech in her nomination for the governor of Minnesota, that would be a massive achievement for our community, and for recognizing that we are a constituency.”

Sen. Amy Klobuchar is the odds-on favorite for the endorsement from the DFL convention.

Finke said she is a fan of Klobuchar, but has concerns at this moment as the federal government has not shown support for any trans issues, that the state continue its protections of trans people.

“I would understand completely the hesitancy of a major candidate to not want to talk every day about trans issues, and nobody's asking for that,” Finke said. “What I'm asking, and what a lot of us are asking, is just let us know that we can rely on you to continue these protections, and I want to be clear, I fully believe that that's what Amy Klobuchar believes, I support Amy, I voted for her many times, I am a fan, I am a friend.”

“But now we're in another phase of life for trans people, and we simply just don't have the luxury of assuming that that's true,” Finke said. “Our community is in danger, and we need to know.”

Six candidates made their pitch to delegates at the Republican state convention that they’re best suited to receive the party’s endorsement.

The pitches ranged from wanting to root out the “deep state” in Washington, D.C. to bringing a stronger focus on policy to breaking the mold of a typical Minnesota GOP candidate.

Former Navy SEAL Adam Schwarze topped the first round of balloting, followed by former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya and the party’s 2024 nominee Royce White in third place, although no candidate got the required 60 percent of the vote needed for endorsement, and additional ballots were expected Friday evening.

In a second round of balloting, Schwarze, Tafoya and White again remained in the top three as other candidates fell away.

Here are some of the punchiest lines from the candidates’ speeches to delegates.

Schwarze drew on his military background in his remarks to delegates, saying Republicans had lost “battle after battle after battle” in Minnesota. But this year could be different with him as the endorsed candidate, Schwarze said.

“If you want a smooth-talking politician, there are other options, and I'll be blunt: if you are happy with the D.C. status quo and the D.C. establishment, there are other options too,” Schwarze said. “If you want a fighter who specializes in no-fail missions, who doesn't know how to quit, who doesn't lead by reading polls, but abides in his faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and who will work like hell when the mission demands, then I ask for your vote.”

Tafoya, who has raised the most money in the race and brought her national profile to the contest, said her entry in the race could be a game changer after 20 years of Republicans coming up short in statewide races.

“If we nominate someone different, someone who has been tried and tested under the brightest lights. Who was a total political outsider, who has spent her whole career calling out BS and getting to the truth then this Senate race in Minnesota will not be a footnote,” Tafoya said. “It will be a national story, one of the most competitive races in the country, and we will win.”

Farmer Mark York said he filled a unique role that other candidates couldn’t fill mobilizing independent voters as well as those in rural communities.

“Adam Schwarze, Michele Tafoya are good people, but Adam Schwarze is not going to win with independents. You'll hear his pitch in a minute, it's all red meat,” York said. “Michele Tafoya, she wins with independents, but she doesn't fire up the real base. I'm the only candidate who does both.”

York also took aim at the candidate expected to win the DFL endorsement for the U.S. Senate seat this weekend – Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, calling her Peggy “fraud again Flanagan.” And he alluded to the hundreds of millions of dollars siphoned from state Medicaid programs in fraud.

Another candidate also came out metaphorically swinging. The party’s 2024 nominee and former NBA player Royce White told the crowd that he was “ultra MAGA, America first, conspiracy theorist, vaccine denier.” He likened himself to U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton in Texas who bested Sen. John Cornyn in a runoff primary this week.

“We're going to save this country, and the endorsement. I hope I have your endorsement, but what I really want is your courage,” White said.

Natural foods co-op founder Alycia Gruenhagen said the party needs to focus on issues like health, limiting abortion and shrinking the role of government.

“Today, too many leaders are asking the government to solve problems that the government was never designed to solve,” Gruenhagen said. “Government cannot replace faith, government cannot replace family government, it cannot replace personal responsibility. Those institutions are what make freedom possible.”

Retired Navy submarine captain Tom Weiler told that crowd that he would “torpedo the do-nothing status quo in the United States Senate.”

As the DFL convention kicked off in Rochester Friday, some delegates said they’ve felt left behind by party politics and politicians in recent years.

That included Tom Schoper of Jeffers.

He teaches agriculture to middle and high schoolers, and he says that the state party has lost touch with the “F” in its name - ‘farmer’.

“They’ve got to reach out to rural Minnesota, they’ve got to have a presence,” he said. “It's more than FarmFest, it's more than your county fair, and it's more than Farm Bureau.”

Sitting next to Schoper was Loren Liepold of Windom. He said that as Democrats focused more on urban issues, it left a vacuum for a candidate like President Donald Trump to make inroads with rural voters that once aligned with the DFL. He sees the party trying to reconnect with those voters during this election cycle.

“There is a divide between large cities and the smaller towns,” he said. “A lot of the rural area has been ignored, and I think it was a bad move by the Democrats at the time, and it's one that's being fixed now.”

Schoper said he wants the DFL to promote more candidates like former 7th Congressional District Rep. Collin Peterson, a Democrat who chaired the Agriculture Committee before losing his seat to Republican Rep. Michelle Fischbach.

“He was pretty pro-gun, pro-Second Amendment, and he knew how to talk to people,” said.

Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is likely to win the DFL endorsement for U.S. Senate at the DFL convention. Schoper said he supports 2nd Congressional District Rep. Angie Craig for U.S. Senate, but Craig said earlier this week she was not going to attend the event. He plans to vote for her in the August primary.

At the DFL state convention in Rochester, Party Chair Richard Carlbom asked how many people in the room were first time delegates, and more than half of the room raised their hands.

Fifty-seven percent of the delegates are first time delegates according to Carlbom.

He opened the proceedings by talking about the killings of two Minneapolis residents by ICE agents, the killing of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and the two students killed in a shooting at Annunciation Catholic School and Church in Minneapolis.

Carlbom said Minnesotans have responded to these events by making their voices heard. He said he sees that in the way new people have gotten involved in politics.

“Every time we got knocked down, more Minnesotans rallied together to build together,” he said.

Carlbom said the party found it easy to find state residents who wanted to get involved.

“Our job is to turn the energy we feel right now into results in November,” he said, adding that the key issues for Democrats this year are affordability and fighting against “Trump’s retribution campaign on our people.”

He was followed by Minnesota Sen. John Hoffman, who along with his wife, survived a politically-targeted shooting by the same man charged with killing the Hortmans.

“The weight of it all - public service, personal hardship, the noise, that noise that you hear, the division, it could have pushed us into silence. It could push us all into silence,” Hoffman told the DFL crowd. “But we made a decision. We made a decision not to withdraw, but to engage, because engagement is where change lives.”

“If we don’t show up, someone else will define our future,” he said.

Hoffman encouraged the delegates to engage in real conversations with neighbors and people around the state.

“You are the connectors, you are the organizers, you are the ones who carry the message into every corner of this state, and when you engage you engage, guess what, others will follow,” he said. “So let's meet this moment.”

Former DFL Chair Ken Martin, who now chairs the Democratic National Committee, spoke briefly to the delegates and declined to take questions from reporters. He has been criticized and faced some calls to resign from some Democrats for delaying the release of a 2024 campaign postmortem and for a lagging fundraising effort.

“You all are running incredible candidates here in Minnesota, and let's get them elected,” Martin told delegates. “In fact, Democrats are running incredible candidates everywhere. And let's get them all elected. The DNC is here to partner with all of you to do that.”