Both the DFL and GOP state conventions took place this past weekend, but most of the unknowns and drama came from the Republican side.
In Rochester, Democrats gathered and chose the presumptive nominees for both governor, and Senate, with current Sen. Amy Klobuchar the choice to run for the state's top executive, and current Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan getting the party nod for the Senate. Flanagan was mainly unopposed after Rep. Angie Craig said she was skipping the party nomination and going straight to the primary, setting up a head-to-head with Flanagan in August.
The GOP had to choose nominees for the same two seats, with Adam Schwarze winning the party nomination for U.S. Senate. He will still need to contend with former sports reporter and WCCO Radio host Michele Tafoya who said she's remaining in through the primary.
The choice for governor is where it gets interesting. Former health care executive and Army vet Kendall Qualls is looking ahead to the long campaign trail after capturing the endorsement of Minnesota Republicans for governor.
"You know, Americans love David and Goliath stories," Qualls said appearing on the WCCO Morning News with Vineeta Sawkar Monday. "That's it. That's number one. Number two, this issue is about an economic turnaround of our state. But at the end of the day, this is about who can lead us in an economic turnaround, who can get our cities back safe."
Qualls defeated House Speaker and pre-convention favorite Lisa Demuth in the endorsement balloting on Saturday in Duluth, a bit of an upset for Qualls.
It's still not known if Demuth will enter the GOP primary for governor. Qualls said that he welcomes the competition, however. WCCO political analyst Blois Olson also noted that in her concession, Demuth did not say she’s abiding by the party choice, and didn't congratulate Qualls.
"So if she goes to the primary, that'd be great," Qualls adds. "I'll take her on and we'll win there because if a two-term Tim Pawlenty governor couldn't win in the primary, Lisa is not going to win in the primary either.
Demuth has until 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday to file for office, and Olson says his sources confirm she met with advisers on Sunday.
Conventions plagued by voting issues
Olson says there is sentiment on both sides of the aisle to do away with state nominating conventions after this weekend.
This comes after technical problems affected floor votes in both the GOP convention in Duluth and DFL convention. Olson told WCCO's Vineeta Sawkar on the Morning News what some said to him it might be time to let primary elections play the major role in deciding who each party runs in the general election.
"We can't put so much weight on these endorsing conventions, especially if you can't be very, very sure that the technology is 100% accurate," Olson explains.
But Qualls downplayed the controversy over electronic balloting at the convention in Duluth, causing a long delay in the process. He says the vote mirrors his campaign's polls that show him leading Demuth across the state.
At the DFL convention, there was a glitch before the auditor's ballot, which eventually went Zack Filipovich of Duluth. But it was more prevalent at the GOP convention.
Olson says affected the mood of the attendees.
"Anyone who was involved in the process all weekend, I think, can raise their hand and be like, this isn't good," says Olson. "And then there was this kind of, I'll call it laissez-faire, like it might not be perfect, but we've got to go ahead and continue to use it."
Mike Lindell, fellow GOP candidate for governor, MyPillow founder and staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, is also an outspoken 2020 presidential election denier, a leading promoter of false conspiracy theories alleging that electronic voting machines were manipulated to rig the 2020 election.
Because of these claims, which have all been found in court to be baseless, he has faced massive defamation lawsuits from election technology companies and has been ordered to pay millions in damages.
"Same as all voting machines, I mean they all have back doors," Lindell said over the weekend. "They're all vulnerable. They're just like any other thing, isn't it funny? This has been the third day in a row now with these vulnerabilities or what's going on. They need to go to paper ballots and count. I mean, here it would be easy."
Lindell was taken off the endorsement race after five ballots because of a lack of support, and he urged his followers to support Qualls.
Olson also said others at the convention called for paper ballots, which he says would slow down the process further.
All party nominees will be chosen in the August 11th primaries.
Controversy surrounds "moment of silence" at GOP convention
There was one moment at the GOP convention that stuck out to oberservers, and that was holding a moment of silence for convicted murdered, Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who held his knee on George Floyd's neck for nine minutes while Floyd was handcuffed and lying face down on the street calling out "I can't breathe" in 2020.
Chauvin was found guilty by a jury in 2021 on three counts: unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. His appeals, including to the Minnesota Supreme Court were denied, and an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court based around claims he didn't get a fair trial was also denied.
Despite that, state Republicans still held a moment of silence to honor Chauvin. State Party Chair Alex Plechash, speaking to WCCO's Vineeta Sawkar, said it came from the body, not party leadership.
"It didn't come from the dais, and the body elected to have that moment of silence," Plechash explains. "We got maybe 10 seconds or so. There are a lot of people, I think, that believe that Derek Chauvin was improperly convicted and not treated well. And those people wanted to have a moment of silence and recognition because they felt that way."
When pressed on whether or not he agrees with that sentiment, Plechash declined to answer, saying "I don't think I'm going to comment on that," and that the court system had its verdict.
"I'm not going to challenge the court," he added.
Pressed further about the fact that a convicted murderer had a moment of silence at the convention, Plechash again declined to answer saying that would indicate his stance on the court's opinion.
"So, I think I'll just let that pass," he said.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison blasted the moment of silence, saying in a statement he is heartbroken and shocked.
"George Floyd’s children lost their father," said Ellison. "His siblings lost their brother. His community lost a neighbor and friend. That loss is permanent and irreparable. The jury heard all the evidence. The appeals courts reviewed every claim. Justice was rendered according to our system of law. To honor the man convicted of murdering George Floyd— days after the very anniversary of that terrible day—is an act of profound cruelty to the Floyd family and to every Minnesotan who believes in accountability under law."
Chauvin is currently serving 22.5 years in federal prison.
The first big political choices of the 2026 Midterms took place ahead of the August 11th primary
The first big political choices of the 2026 Midterms took place ahead of the August 11th primary
