Minnesota Republicans have not won a statewide election since Tim Pawlenty was reelected governor in 2006. We have a road that has been made more difficult this year by the performance of ICE during Operation Metro Surge. The performance of ICE has done much to offset the disgust of Minnesotans with the massive fraud that has proliferated under Governor Tim Walz. It resulted in Walz abandoning his quest for an absurd third term for govenor. I wrote about that in the Examiner column “Exit Tim Walz, stage Biden.”
Here is a trivia question for political junkies. Who was the last Republican to serve as Minnesota Attorney General? I happen to know because I saw him speak at my high school before the election. I was a sophomore at the time — a long time ago. The year was 1966. His name was Douglas Head. He served one term.
Republicans now have two plausible gubernatorial candidates in the upcoming August 11 primary. Kendall Qualls is the endorsed candidate. House Speaker Lisa Demuth is challenging him. I intend to vote for Demuth, but I like Qualls as well.
MyPillow man Mike Lindell is also contending in the primary for the nomination. Today President Trump has done his best to preserve the perfect losing record of Minnesota Republicans over the past 20 years by endorsing Lindell. With Lindell at the top of the Republican ticket, we can rest assured that another wipeout awaits in the races for statewide office. It won’t help Republicans running for legislative office either, where Republicans more or less held their own in 2024.
Mike Lindell, the “Pillow Man,” and one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots, is running to be GOVERNOR OF MINNESOTA, replacing one of the worst and most incompetent governors in the history of the U.S.A. Early Primary Voting has begun and, if given the chance,… pic.twitter.com/ntm2ZC0HXD
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Truth Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) July 15, 2026
The New York Times has posted a few polls of the Republican gubernatorial contest here. They were either conducted for a Republican client or by a pollster deemed not to meet the Times’s criteria. They all show Lindell to be in the thick of it — “plausible” in that sense.
Trump must think his endorsement can help Lindell over the top of the divided vote in a multicandidate field or have his own poll showing him to be in the lead. I think his endorsement of Lindell is a demoralizing joke.
I wrote about Lindell, most recently, in “Mike Lindell proves me a fool.” He may do it again. You never know.
