Walz has historic opportunity, faces challenges in bid for third term as governor

Gov. Tim Walz announced Tuesday he will run for an unprecedented third term as governor, ending months of speculation over whether he would seek another four years on the job.

“We’ve made historic progress in our state, but we’re not done yet,” Walz said in a two-minute campaign video. Posted to social media, the video was filled with scenes of the governor driving around the state in his vintage International SUV with his black Lab, Scout.

Walz, 61, has campaign cash and a long record on which to run. He’s also now a household name across the country after his unsuccessful 2024 run on the Democratic presidential ticket with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

But he will also face plenty of challenges, including a Republican opposition intent on holding him accountable for fraud in state-run benefits programs, sliding support in greater Minnesota and the reality that no governor has served three consecutive four-year terms.

“Tim Walz’s leadership has left our state with a weak economy, failing schools, and skyrocketing crime,” U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer posted on social media. “It’s time to vote him out this November to make Minnesota great again!”

Walz’s decision to run, which the Minnesota Star Tribune reported last week, means he will have more than a year to campaign with the Democratic Party united behind him. The DFL called Walz an “example for leaders across the country” and touted Minnesota’s record low unemployment rate and high student graduation rate under his leadership.

“Tim Walz is focused on making your life more safe, secure, and affordable,” DFL Party Chair Richard Carlbom said in a statement.

Several high-profile Democrats rumored to be possible gubernatorial candidates, including Secretary of State Steve Simon and Attorney General Keith Ellison, will now likely run for re-election themselves. Ellison said Walz “has my full support” in a Tuesday statement. Other prominent Democrats including U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar also publicly backed Walz on Tuesday.

He will also have to select a new running mate, as Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is running for U.S. Senate. Walz’s office said no lieutenant governor candidates have been spoken to yet.

The Republican field of candidates, meanwhile, is still growing and may not be whittled to a single nominee until the primary next August. The three leading candidates are Republican state Rep. Kristin Robbins of Maple Grove, Chaska physician Scott Jensen, who lost to Walz in 2022, and businessman Kendall Qualls.

National Republicans highlighted Walz’s 2024 vice presidential loss and criticized him for embracing the “disastrous policies” of national Democrats.

“Minnesotans deserve a governor who will actually do the job, work for them, and take governing seriously. That’s not Tim Walz,” Republican Governors Association Communications Director Courtney Alexander said in a statement.

The high-water mark of his second term was the passage of a slew of DFL policy priorities in 2023, when Democrats held the Governor’s Office and the Legislature.

The Democratic trifecta used a historic budget surplus to increase funding for public schools and provide universal school meals. They also eliminated many restrictions on abortion, banned conversion therapy, mandated paid family leave, expanded MinnesotaCare to cover undocumented immigrants and passed gun-control measures, including universal background checks and a red flag law.

Walz gave the credit for many of those wins to former House Speaker Melissa Hortman, who was assassinated in her home in June alongside her husband, Mark. In his campaign video, Walz alluded to those slayings and the recent mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis as a motivating factor in his run for a third term.

“I’m heartbroken and angry about the beautiful people we lost to gun violence,” Walz said. “But it’s in these moments we have to come together. We can’t lose hope, because I’ve seen what we can do when we work together.”

Walz is expected to soon call a special session to address gun violence. It’s unlikely a majority of legislators will support the sweeping restrictions on guns that Walz wants, but the governor has vowed to revisit gun control in future sessions if they are unwilling to act now.

The video ends with Walz saying he’s going on a listening tour across the state.

“I’ll see you out there,” he said.