Walz will not seek a third term as governor, as Senator Amy Klobuchar is now exploring a bid for the open seat in the 2026 election.<\/b>
\nMinnesota Governor Tim Walz, Democrats\u2019 2024 candidate for vice-president, is ending his bid for a third term as governor amid President Donald Trump\u2019s relentless focus on a fraud investigation into child care programmes in the state.
Less than four months after announcing his re-election campaign, Walz said on Monday that he could no longer devote the energy necessary to win another term, even as he expressed confidence that he could win.
Walz said in a statement on Monday that he \u201ccan\u2019t give a political campaign my all\u201d after what he described as an \u201cextraordinarily difficult year for our state\u201d.
\u201cDonald Trump and his allies \u2013 in Washington, in St Paul, and online \u2013 want to make our state a colder, meaner place,\u201d Walz said, referring to the Trump administration withholding funds for the programmes. \u201cThey want to poison our people against each other by attacking our neighbours. And ultimately, they want to take away much of what makes Minnesota the best place in America to raise a family.\u201d
Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota is considering running for governor, according to a person close to her. The person, who wasn\u2019t authorised to speak publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Klobuchar has not made a final decision.
Around a dozen Republicans are already in the race. They include MyPillow founder and Chief Executive Mike Lindell, an election denier who is close to Trump. They also include Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth, of Cold Spring; Dr Scott Jensen, a former state senator from Chaska who was the party\u2019s 2022 candidate; state Representative Kristin Robbins, of Maple Grove; defence lawyer and former federal prosecutor Chris Madel; former executive Kendall Qualls; and former Minnesota Republican Party Chair David Hann.<\/p>\n