MN Senate Election: Candidates, Field, and Key Dates

Minnesota’s 2026 U.S. Senate election will fill the open seat left by Democratic Senator Tina Smith, with a primary on August 11, 2026, and a general election on November 3, 2026.1Minnesota Secretary of State. Elections Calendar2Cook Political Report. Minnesota Senate Race3Inside Elections. Senate Ratings4UVA Center for Politics. Notes on the State of Politics: MN Sen to Likely Democratic

Why the Seat Is Open

Smith announced on February 13, 2025, that she would not seek reelection, calling the decision “entirely personal” and citing time with family.5Office of Senator Tina Smith. U.S. Senator Tina Smith Pens Op-Ed Announcing She Will Not Seek Reelection in 20266MPR News. Tina Smith Will Not Run for Reelection in Senate in 2026 She was appointed to the seat in 2017, won a 2018 special election, and secured a full six-year term in November 2020.7Office of Senator Tina Smith. Biography Her retirement created Minnesota’s first open Senate seat in years and drew candidates from both parties within weeks.

The Democratic Candidates

Peggy Flanagan

Flanagan is Minnesota’s 50th lieutenant governor and a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe. She is the highest-ranking Native woman elected to executive office in U.S. history, and if elected she would be the first Native American woman in the Senate. Her platform focuses on expanding the social safety net, protecting abortion access, funding child care, and advocating for Indigenous communities. As lieutenant governor she led the creation of Minnesota’s Office of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives and helped pass universal school meals and paid family and medical leave at the state level.8The Nation. Peggy Flanagan Minnesota Senate

Flanagan has been endorsed by Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen, and Tina Smith.8The Nation. Peggy Flanagan Minnesota Senate On May 30, 2026, she won the DFL Party endorsement by acclamation after her campaign reported winning delegates in more than 90 percent of local-unit conventions.9MPR News. Flanagan Wins DFL Senate Endorsement but Faces Primary Challenge

Angie Craig

Craig is a three-term U.S. Representative from Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District and the ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee. She announced her Senate bid on April 29, 2025, presenting herself as a moderate Democrat focused on lowering costs and fighting corruption, and pointing to her record of winning a swing district Donald Trump carried.10Axios Twin Cities. Angie Craig Running Minnesota Senate 2026

On May 27, 2026, Craig announced she would skip the DFL convention entirely and go directly to the primary, calling the convention process “unrepresentative and undemocratic.” She has drawn criticism from party progressives for her vote in favor of the Laken Riley Act, a vote she later said she regretted.11Minnesota Reformer. Angie Craig Abandons Democratic Party Endorsement in Senate Bid, Looks Straight to Primary

Money and Polling on the Democratic Side

Craig has a substantial fundraising lead. In the first quarter of 2026 she raised $2.5 million and reported $4.8 million cash on hand, compared with Flanagan’s $1.3 million raised and $1.1 million on hand.12Politico. Angie Craig Peggy Flanagan Minnesota Senate Cash A June 2026 SurveyUSA poll of the Democratic primary put Craig at 41 percent and Flanagan at 36 percent, with 23 percent undecided or favoring other candidates.13270toWin. Minnesota 2026 Senate Polls Former state Senate DFL leader Melisa López Franzen is also on the primary ballot but has raised significantly less.14FEC. 2026 Senate Elections: Minnesota

The Republican Candidates

Adam Schwarze

Schwarze is a former Navy SEAL who served 21 years in the military. He won the Minnesota GOP endorsement on May 29, 2026, after six ballots at the state convention, reaching 62 percent of the delegate vote.15MPR News. Schwarze Wins GOP Endorsement in U.S. Senate Race He ran as an uncompromising conservative and appealed to the party’s Trump-aligned base, though his earlier donation to Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign drew criticism from rivals.16Minnesota Reformer. Former Navy SEAL Wins GOP Endorsement in Crowded Race for Senate

Michele Tafoya

Tafoya, a four-time Emmy-winning former NBC Sunday Night Football sideline reporter, announced her campaign in late January 2026 and describes herself as a “common sense conservative” and political outsider.17The Well News. Former Sportscaster Tafoya Enters Minnesota Senate Race18Fox News. Hall of Famer Tony Dungy Endorses Michele Tafoya in Crowded Minnesota Republican Primary

Tafoya finished second at the GOP convention with about 32 percent of delegate votes but leads primary polling. A June 2026 SurveyUSA poll showed her at 36 percent, with Royce White at 15 percent and Schwarze at 7 percent, and 42 percent undecided or preferring other candidates.13270toWin. Minnesota 2026 Senate Polls She is considered more moderate than Schwarze, and her name recognition gives her an advantage with primary voters beyond the convention delegates.16Minnesota Reformer. Former Navy SEAL Wins GOP Endorsement in Crowded Race for Senate

Royce White and the Rest of the Field

Royce White, a former NBA player, was the 2024 Republican nominee for Minnesota’s other Senate seat, losing to Amy Klobuchar by roughly 16 percentage points with about 40.5 percent of the vote.19Minnesota Secretary of State. 2024 U.S. Senate Election Results20ESPN. Ex-NBA Player Royce White Loses Bid for Minnesota U.S. Senate Seat21MPR News. Minnesota U.S. Senate Race Heats Up14FEC. 2026 Senate Elections: Minnesota

What Voters Say Matters, and How the General Election Looks

An Emerson College poll conducted in February 2026 found the top issue for Minnesota voters was threats to democracy at 28 percent, followed by immigration at 17 percent and the economy at 16 percent. The split ran along partisan lines: 49 percent of Democrats and 29 percent of independents named threats to democracy, while 31 percent of Republicans named immigration.22Emerson College Polling. Minnesota 2026 Poll: Democrats Lead GOP as Voters Cite Threats to Democracy

The same poll tested general election matchups against Tafoya, the Republican polling leader. Flanagan led her 47 to 41 percent, and Craig led 47 to 40 percent.22Emerson College Polling. Minnesota 2026 Poll: Democrats Lead GOP as Voters Cite Threats to Democracy Minnesota has not elected a Republican to the U.S. Senate since 2002, and Donald Trump lost the state by four points in 2024. Those figures sit behind the Likely Democratic ratings from the three forecasters.17The Well News. Former Sportscaster Tafoya Enters Minnesota Senate Race

Key Dates for Voters