Could Michele Tafoya be the key to the first statewide GOP victory in Minnesota since 2006?
In the aftermath of the primary, Republicans in Minnesota are more optimistic about their November chances than they ever have been.
Conservative Star Tribune Columnist Andy Brehm went so far as to say, "Finally, Minnesota Republicans nominate winners."
One of those candidates is GOP Senate nominee Michele Tafoya, a pioneering sports broadcaster and radio host. Tafoya once worked at WCCO-TV before heading on to network television.
Her opponent in the November election, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, has been quick to label Tafoya a "yes-sir" senator for President Trump. However, in 2024, Tafoya said Mr. Trump should not run again.
"I am running to represent Minnesota. I am not running to answer to party bosses, or to lobbyists or to special interests, or even to a president," Tafoya said.
Tafoya is one of the only pro-choice Republicans running for U.S Senate. She supports abortions through a woman's first trimester.
Throughout the primary, Tafoya has campaigned against the state's fraud crisis, calling it the source of Minnesota's national embarrassment. She told WCCO that she does not feel like Flanagan has taken responsibility for the fraud.
"She has gone as far as to say, 'Blame it all on the governor, blame it on Tim Walz.' She is trying to separate herself from a governor she has served for eight years," Tafoya said.
Flanagan has stated that Tafoya once said "ICE treats children very, very well." Tafoya says she was talking about Liam Ramos.
"I am talking about the one incident of which I am aware of, which I know this young boy was treated kindly and humanely, and she's painting with a broad brush; that's what Peggy Flanagan does," Tafoya said.
In the primary, Tafoya won big, but she didn't put up the numbers Flanagan did: 211,000 voters cast ballots for Tafoya but nearly double that, 411,000, cast ballots for Flanagan.
A key question this November: can candidates like Michele Tafoya get more Republicans to the polls?
You can watch WCCO Sunday Morning with Esme Murphy and Adam Del Rosso every Sunday at 6 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
