Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar has launched a campaign to become Minnesota’s next governor after incumbent Gov. Tim Walz announced earlier this month that he would not seek a third term.
“I believe we must stand up for what’s right, and fix what’s wrong. That’s why today I’m announcing my candidacy for governor of the state of Minnesota,” Klobuchar, 65, said in a video posted to X on Thursday, Jan. 29.
In the video, Klobuchar highlighted priorities such as affordable health care and housing, while also criticizing the presence of “3,000 ICE agents in our streets and towns sent by an administration that relishes division.”
“I’m running for every Minnesotan who wants ICE and its abusive tactics out of the state we love,” she said.
Klobuchar also referenced recent fatal shootings involving federal agents since President Donald Trump increased immigration enforcement in the state.
“Minnesota, we’ve been through a lot,” Klobuchar said, pointing to the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, as well as the assassinations of the state’s former House speaker, Melissa Hortman, and her husband, Mark Hortman, last year.
Walz, 61 — the 2024 Democratic nominee for vice president — said on Jan. 5 that he decided against running for reelection amid the Trump administration’s accusations of child care fraud in the state.
“I came to the conclusion that I can’t give a political campaign my all,” Walz said in a statement at the time. “Every minute I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity and the cynics who prey on our differences.”
In an interview with MS NOW on Wednesday, Jan. 29, he went further, saying, “I will never run for an elected office again. Never again.”
If Klobuchar — who is not up for reelection to the Senate until 2030 — wins the governor’s race in November 2026, she would be able to appoint a temporary replacement until a special election is called. The winner of that special election would serve out the remainder of her Senate term.
