![Surrounded by his wife Janelle and their five children, Ryan Wilson accepted the GOP endorsement for state auditor, Friday, May 13, 2022 Rochester, First day of the Minnesota State Republican Convention in the Mayo Civic Center. ] GLEN STUBBE • glen.stubbe@startribune.com](/cdn-cgi/image/onerror=redirect,width=640,height=640,format=webp/https://storage.googleapis.com/uploads.mongoosehq.com/url/media/69662213/9b1f3142018ce1f74c6f4b9a7444e73e3dee6a233dc971fb4e3fb166d6eb9555)
Overview
- Ryan Wilson, an attorney and former small-business owner, narrowly lost the 2022 state auditor race to DFL incumbent Julie Blaha by roughly half a percentage point.
- Demuth’s campaign scheduled a Monday news conference and a statewide tour later this week to roll out the ticket.
- The Minnesota House speaker becomes the first prominent Republican in the 2026 field to announce a lieutenant governor pick.
- Wilson’s background includes work at the CrossCastle law firm, founding the medical device company Symbios Clinical, and volunteering as a 2020 poll watcher with Lawyers for Trump.
- Gov. Tim Walz is seeking a third term and has not named a running mate after Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan entered the U.S. Senate race, and other GOP hopefuls have yet to announce their picks.