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Amy Klobuchar often reminded Iowa caucusgoers during her presidential stump speeches in 2020 she was the highest vote-getter in Minnesota’s history, evidence of her appeal in the American heartland. That pitch didn’t earn her any primary victories — but it’s now a rallying point for Minnesota Democrats who hope she’ll run for governor.
Klobuchar’s long track record of blowout wins in Minnesota — she outperformed Kamala Harris in Minnesota by more than 130,000 votes in 2024 and the closest of her four Senate wins was a 16-point victory in 2018 — has Democrats hoping she can once again help keep control of their blue-leaning state even as the state has seen other tight races in recent years.
The senator has been the one constant in Minnesota politics since she first won her Senate seat in 2006, carrying on through three governors, two senators and significant turnover in the congressional delegation. And she’s been a stabilizing force as Minnesota Democrats weathered a decade of chaos, from Sen. Al Franken’s resignation in 2017 to George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolisand the ensuing protests in 2020. Now, there’s the ongoing federal probe into a fraud scandal that threatened to engulf Gov. Tim Walz’s reelection bid and played a role in his Monday decision to drop out.
“She has the ability to come in and save our state,” said Bill Harper, a Minnesota Democratic strategist. “Now, people are going to be excited about the top of the ticket.”
A person close to Klobuchar, granted anonymity to describe private conversations, said Monday she’s seriously considering a run but she hadn’t decided yet, though she is receiving encouragement from Minnesota Democrats to do so. It’s also not clear how a bid for governor in 2026 might affect her decision to run again for the presidential nomination in a wide-open primary in 2028.
If she goes for governor, it’ll be a new — and tougher — test of Klobuchar’s resilience in a state that’s trended redder in recent years. In the state Legislature, Democrats hold the state Senate by a one-seat margin and the state House is split evenly, the narrowest legislative margin in the country. President Donald Trump cut Democrats’ advantage in the state by 3 percentage points in 2024….
Wiki…Amy Jean Klobuchar
image…..CNN
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