Tafoya wins GOP Senate primary in Minnesota — SkimNews
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- Michele Tafoya won Minnesota's GOP Senate primary with more than 52% of the vote with nearly all ballots counted, finishing ahead of Marine veteran and Navy SEAL Adam Schwarze and former NBA player Royce White.
- Peggy Flanagan, a progressive who defeated centrist U.S. Rep. Angie Craig after campaigning to fight corporate influence and confront Trump, will face Tafoya for the open seat vacated by retiring Democratic Sen. Tina Smith.
- Minnesota voters haven't elected a Republican to a statewide office since 2006, and Republicans hope a public funds fraud scandal opens up the ballot up and down the ticket.
- Tafoya, during her campaign, stressed her opposition to transgender women playing women's sports and is known for her sideline reporting on NBC's "Sunday Night Football" and ESPN/ABC's "Monday Night Football," plus a political podcast.
- Royce White had an existing profile as a prior candidate and conservative commentator and recently said he would declare for the 2027 WNBA draft, inserting himself, per the article, into the ongoing national discussion about transgender athletes in women's and girls' sports.
- President Trump did not endorse a candidate in Minnesota's Senate primary, though the national GOP supported Tafoya.
Why it matters: The GOP is betting a public funds fraud scandal and Tafoya's broadcast profile can crack Minnesota's 2006 streak of Democratic statewide wins; Flanagan counters with a progressive, anti-Trump message. If Republicans flip this open seat in a closely divided Senate, it tightens the majority math — if Democrats hold it, the balance stays intact.
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