Democratic U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, who has won a string of victories in the closely divided 2nd Congressional District, is running for U.S. Senate to replace Sen. Tina Smith, who recently announced her retirement.
Craig, who has represented the 2nd District since 2019, will battle Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in what is expected to be a grueling and expensive Democratic-Farmer-Labor primary.
The contest will split the party along ideological lines. Flanagan has long been a champion of progressive causes while Craig has garnered attention for breaking from her party on issues like law enforcement and immigration.
Craig’s press release announcing her campaign leans on popular issues like lowering the cost of prescription drugs; stopping corporate concentration; banning members of Congress from trading stocks; and addressing the nation’s mental health and addiction problems.
“We all know Washington’s not listening to you — and that’s got to change,” said Craig, who’s been in Washington for six years.
In a video announcement, Craig drives a Jeep adorned with rubber ducks and speaks to the viewer while standing in front of a tractor.
She frequently refers to her upbringing in a mobile home park, raised by a single mom. She went on to become successful in the medical device industry.
Craig is Minnesota’s first openly lesbian member of Congress and is married and has four adult sons and three grandchildren.
She was the victim of random violence in the elevator of her Washington, D.C. apartment building in 2023, fending off the attacker with her hot coffee before escaping.
Her campaign release uses the phrase “fought like hell” twice, once referring to her family’s battle to adopt children, and again referring to her work on “behalf of family farmers.”
Craig’s centrist politics have helped her win four consecutive elections in the purple 2nd District in the south metro, with her margin of victory expanding until she won a blowout in 2024 despite Republicans’ nationwide success at the ballot box. She’s a vocal proponent of law enforcement, has voted on Republican-led border security bills and is the top Democrat on the House Committee on Agriculture.
In recent months, Craig seemed to be making moves to appeal to the DFL’s progressive base, perhaps in preparation for a statewide run. She invited Denise Specht, president of the state’s influential teachers union Education Minnesota, to be her guest at President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress in March. She joined with well-known progressive Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, to form a new caucus, known as the Monopoly Busters Caucus.
A spokeswoman for Flanagan sought to draw a contrast, though without naming Craig.
“In Peggy you have a lifelong Minnesotan who has spent her entire career fighting for and delivering economic wins and stability for kids and families. And she’s building a formidable campaign powered by actual people, not corporations,” said campaign spokeswoman Alexandra Fetissoff.
Flanagan announced her bid for Senate in February. Last week, she released a list of endorsements from lawmakers in Craig’s district, including DFL state Sens. Lindsey Port and Erin Maye Quade, and Reps. Kristi Pursell, Jess Hanson and Mary Frances Clardy. She’s also won the endorsement of Attorney General Keith Ellison, former U.S. Sen. Al Franken and State Auditor Julie Blaha.
Former Senate DFL Leader Melisa López Franzen, who decided not to run in 2022 after redistricting, is also a candidate. Most recently she was the chief lobbyist for the University of Minnesota.
Craig’s departure in the 2nd District is expected to set off a competitive race to replace her — on both sides. Potential candidates include 2024 GOP nominee Joe Teirab; 2020 and 2022 GOP nominee Tyler Kistner; DFL state Sens. Matt Klein and Erin Maye Quade; former state Sen. Matt Little; and former Minneapolis DFL vice chair and businessman Mike Norton.
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