Lisa Demuth wins Minnesota Republican primary for governor

Lisa Demuth won the Republican primary for Minnesota governor on August 11, 2026. Demuth is the Speaker of the Minnesota House and has served four terms in the state legislature. She beat Mike Lindell, the founder of MyPillow, and businessman Kendall Qualls, along with several other candidates. President Trump had endorsed Lindell, but that support was not enough for him to win. The state Republican Party had backed Qualls, so Demuth won without support from either Trump or her own party. She has chosen Ryan Wilson as her running mate. Democrat Amy Klobuchar won her party's primary. Incumbent governor Tim Walz chose not to run again. Analysts currently rate the seat as safely Democratic.