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Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) Announces She Will Not Run For Re-election in 2026 [1]
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Date: 2025-02-13
US Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) has announced she will not run for re-election in 2026. Her decision will set off a fascinating scramble in both parties for what was to be the most high-profile race in the state that year, with the governor’s seat right behind it (Gov Walz has not yet said if he will run for a third term or not).
The Senate map was already looking challenging — and by that I mean being able to regain the majority in the chamber — for Dems in 2026. Hopefully Sen. Smith’s departure will not make it even more so. It will be interesting to see the names that start bubbling to the surface in the coming weeks as potential candidates for both parties.
And make no mistake, Minnesota is a lean-blue state, but a D victory in a open seat is not nearly the proverbial slam dunk folks might think it will be.
The decision comes after Smith had been conveying her plan to run again for a seat she has held since 2018. She has won two prior Senate elections, including a 5-percentage-point victory when last on the ballot in 2020. She had more than $700,000 in her campaign account to start the year. "I have loved my job as United States Senator, and also, after 20 years of hard and rewarding work in the public sector, I'm ready to spend more time with my family," Smith said in a video announcing her decision. Smith added, "This decision is not political, it is entirely personal, but it's not lost on me that our country is in need of strong progressive leadership right now, maybe more than ever." She said she would put her all into the final two years of the term and expressed confidence that a fellow Democrat from a "deep bench of political talent" in Minnesota would take her place after the next election.
x I’ve decided not to run for re-election to the Senate in 2026.
This job has been the honor of a lifetime. For the rest of my term, I’ll work as hard as I can for Minnesotans and our country.
Thank you so much, Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/3sWVib8nKJ — Senator Tina Smith (@SenTinaSmith) February 13, 2025
UPDATE : As noted by a couple commenters, Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan is signaling she will run for the seat.
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