Overview

• Walz announced his campaign in a video highlighting paid family and medical leave, a child tax credit, and investments in schools and public safety, while vowing to crack down on fraud and address gun violence.
• If he wins, Walz would become the first Minnesota governor elected to three consecutive four-year terms since the state adopted four-year gubernatorial terms.
• The Republican field already includes Scott Jensen, Kristin Robbins, Kendall Qualls, Brad Kohler, Phillip Parrish, and Jeff Johnson, with no serious DFL primary challenger expected.
• Recent violence, including the killings of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband and a deadly shooting at Annunciation Catholic School, weighed on Walz’s decision and informs his push for a special legislative session on gun measures.
• Walz enters with the advantages of incumbency and prior fundraising strength, though Republicans are targeting COVID-era oversight failures such as the $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud case.