Retired sportscaster Michele Tafoya on Wednesday announced she will run for Minnesota’s soon-to-be vacated U.S. Senate seat as a Republican.
Tafoya, who has teased a run for weeks, is seeking the seat held by Sen. Tina Smith, who is retiring at the end of the year.
Tafoya was a sports broadcaster for 30 years, most notably with NBC Sunday Night Football, and retired in 2022. After leaving television, Tafoya became the co-chair for Kendall Qualls’ unsuccessful 2022 Republican campaign for governor. She now has a Minnesota politics podcast.
“For too long, hardworking people have been ripped off by criminals, corporations and career politicians, and the people doing everything right are the ones paying the biggest price,” Tafoya said in a video posted to X announcing her campaign. “Well, I’m not going to stay on the sidelines any longer.”
Tafoya joins a large group of GOP candidates running for the Republican nomination, including former Minnesota Republican Party Chair David Hann, 2024 GOP nominee for U.S. Senate and conspiracy theorist Royce White and Navy Seal Adam Schwarze. Precinct caucuses are Feb. 3, meaning Tafoya has days to round up the caucus-goers who will eventually endorse candidates at the Republican state convention in May.
Tafoya’s name recognition will likely help her in a primary contest, as well as her status as a political outsider. But she’s a self-described “pro-choice conservative,” which may hurt her prospects among Republicans — especially the partisans who typically gather at the state convention and conservative voters who tend to turn out for the August primary.
Tafoya is a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump and frequent critic of Minnesota Democrats. Most recently, she’s criticized Gov. Tim Walz for the fraud in public programs that has occurred under his watch.
Republicans haven’t won a statewide race in Minnesota since 2006. Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and U.S. Rep Angie Craig are running for the Democratic-Farmer-Labor nomination for the soon-to-be-vacated Senate seat.
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