In a state drawing nonstop national attention, voters jumped Tuesday at the chance to sound off on the immigration and fraud themes that have kept Minnesota in the headlines.
Precinct caucuses attended by tens of thousands of voters across Minnesota offered that venting venue as well as a chance to anoint the top contenders in an open race for governor.
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar cemented her place as the DFL Party’s frontrunner and likely nominee, while House Speaker Lisa Demuth and businessman Kendall Qualls separated from the pack on the Republican side, with MyPillow’s Mike Lindell also in the top three.
For other GOP candidates, the results could lead to some campaign soul-searching in the days ahead, although some have vowed to press on through a May endorsing convention and into an August primary.
The nonbinding straw polls were only a small part of the night’s story. Turnout was off the charts in some locations as voters used caucuses to voice their displeasure with the state of affairs, whether it’s in their own Capitol or coming out of Washington.
For Democrats, that was the ongoing immigration crackdown now two full months in.
That was Theresa Baker’s motivation as she was drawn back to caucuses for the first time since high school.
“I carry my passport in my car. I was born in St. Paul. It doesn’t matter anymore. And so I have to care. I have to care,” Baker said. “I have to give a damn.”
Amino Warsame attended a caucus in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis, an area that has been targeted for immigration actions. She said President Donald Trump’s caustic comments about Somali people have been harmful. They strengthened her resolve to elect Democrats.
“I used to agree with Republicans on some issues, right? And some values. But now, whatever those values are, whatever those issues are, doesn't include me, right?” Warsame said. “It's like that party, their own, the people that they serve, that doesn't include me.”
On the flip side, Republican Lisa Burth from Georgetown Township saw Democrats as the problem in the immigration debate.
“What’s going on right now in Minnesota. People are getting injured and killed,” Burth said at a caucus in Dilworth. “The people who are rioting have been told it’s OK by the governor.”
Republicans had another big draw as well: A competitive race to be the party’s candidate for governor. This night was seen as important to separating the pack.
Qualls, who came up shy of the party endorsement four years ago, spoke at Delano High School.
“I love this country. I fear we’re in the face of losing it, especially here in the state of Minnesota,” he said. “If we don’t win it this time around, we’re going to lose our state. It’s going to be a permanent Democrat state. We have a chance to win it.”
Fraud in state government programs stirred outrage for Republican caucus attendees, too.
“I'm really interested in standing up for our rights and going against and finding out more about the fraud that's been happening here in the state of Minnesota, and get some people in positions that will actually do something about it,” said Bill Nibbe, who caucused with his neighbors in Delano.
Down in Rochester, 84-year-old Ann Van Ryn caucused for the first time. She said she’s fed up with Trump, especially his immigration actions in Minnesota. And she wants Democrats to get in Trump’s way.
“I think they could be doing more,” she said. “I wish they would step up more.”
From here, party leaders will analyze turnout for clues of what might be ahead in this midterm election year. Voters who showed up might run for party convention delegates. And the candidates who stick it out now know where they stand in the pecking order.
The voters who turned out say they’ll be tuned in throughout.
Randy Stocker, a GOP caucus attendee in Rochester, hasn't decided yet on who to support in the Minnesota governor's race. But the festival manager said he's confident Republicans will do well as the economy improves. He's happy with how Trump is running the country.
“Sometimes he says things that I don't like. And he calls people names, which I don't think is very presidential, but I like the direction. He's a very good decisionmaker,” Stocker said. “And he sticks to his guns."
Laurie Sieve, a registered nurse who caucused in Northfield, is just as high on her party’s chances to win the governorship with Klobuchar as the likely nominee and keep the state’s other U.S. Senate seat in DFL hands.
Still, Sieve said if the midterms goes the Democratic Party’s way, she wants the political power to mean something.
“I want people to be held responsible for what is happening right now and the trauma that they have inflicted on so many people,” she said. “I don't want to just let that be brushed under the rug."
Molly Castle Work in Rochester, Peter Cox in Delano, Cait Kelley in Northfield, Nicole Ki in Minneapolis and Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval in Dilworth contributed to this story.
