(The Center Square) – Following a chaotic Republican state convention, two prominent Republican candidates have decided to run in Minnesota’s gubernatorial primary despite not receiving the party’s endorsement.
House Speaker Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, was leading the pack of candidates going into the convention. In an upset, businessman Kendall Qualls ended up with the Republican’s endorsement for governor after 10 rounds of voting.
On Tuesday, Demuth announced plans to continue running in the primary, despite previously stating she would drop out if she did not receive the endorsement.
“I said at the outset of this campaign seven months ago, Minnesota is at a crossroads and desperately needs new leadership after two terms of Tim Walz,” Demuth said. “The Demuth-Wilson ticket is the only Republican ticket with proven conservative leadership, a grassroots network and the resources it will take to defeat Amy Klobuchar in November. Ryan Wilson and I look forward to meeting as many Republicans as possible on the road to the primary on Tuesday, Aug. 11.”
Demuth filed with the secretary of state on Tuesday for the primary election, along with her running mate Ryan Wilson. MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and running mate Phillip Parish also filed this week to run in the primary, despite not receiving the party’s endorsement.
Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Alex Plechash released a statement this week regarding both the voting chaos at convention, which led to some inconsistencies in some rounds of voting, and releasing candidates from their commitments to drop out.
“We remain confident in the integrity of the data,” Plechash said. “Because of the unusual circumstances and the confusion caused by the disruption, I believe it is appropriate to make clear that any gubernatorial candidate who agreed to abide by the endorsement, should not be treated as bound by that pledge.”
Qualls called out Demuth for her decision to continue her campaign.
“As recently as this weekend, Lisa Demuth committed to abiding by the party endorsement and respecting the decision of thousands of Republican delegates,” Qualls said following Demuth’s announcement. “Now, she is putting vanity and political ambitions ahead of giving Republicans their best chance in decades to elect a conservative governor.”
He especially expressed concern about the impact it, and Plechash’s statement, could have on the party’s unity.
“This is the swamp in action,” Qualls said. “We won on Saturday, we’re going to win in August and again in November.”
Plechash said in his statement that the Republican party is still fully backing Qualls, despite releasing the other candidates from their commitments.
“That decision does not change the party’s position,” he said. “The Republican Party of Minnesota stands behind its endorsed candidates. Only our endorsed candidate for Governor, Kendall Qualls, will receive the full support, resources, and organizational backing of the state party.”
On the Democratic side, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party officially endorsed U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar for governor.
Notably, U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, announced that she would be bypassing the Democratic-Farmer-Labor endorsement process altogether to focus on the August primary.
The state’s primary is Aug. 11, followed by the general election Nov. 3.
