President Donald Trump endorses Mike Lindell for Minnesota governor

Ryan Faircloth and Paul Walsh, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Jul 15, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — President Donald Trump endorsed Mike Lindell’s campaign for Minnesota governor on Wednesday, giving the MyPillow founder new momentum ahead of a three-way GOP primary election next month.

Trump’s endorsement instantly upended the dynamic of the Republican race, which had been viewed as a toss-up between Lindell, Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth and Kendall Qualls, a retired health care executive who won the state GOP endorsement in May.

On his Truth Social account early Wednesday, Trump took a shot at current DFL Gov. Tim Walz and called Lindell “one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots, [who] is running to be GOVERNOR OF MINNESOTA, replacing one of the worst and most incompetent governors in the history of the U.S.A.”

Trump went on to write that “nobody has sacrificed more than Mike Lindell in fighting for our country, especially when it comes to Election Integrity. ... MIKE LINDELL HAS MY COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT - HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN.”

Trump’s endorsements have often proven to be beneficial for candidates across the country during primary campaigns. The president has often made endorsements as retaliation to sitting officeholders he believes did not support his political agenda at one time or another.

In an interview Wednesday, Lindell said he believes Trump’s backing will carry him to victory over Demuth and Qualls. He pointed to some polls that found the president’s endorsement would boost him to first place.

“My mind is just rolling because I’m so excited,” Lindell said, adding that he did not know the endorsement was coming Wednesday.

“There’s so much hope, and now it’s just … to a whole new level."

The possibility of Lindell becoming the GOP nominee for governor has alarmed many Republican operatives in Minnesota who believe he would be the least competitive candidate to face U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, the DFL-endorsed candidate for governor, in November.

In a June Minnesota Poll, Demuth fared the best against Klobuchar with 40% of voters supporting her compared with 48% for the Democrat. Qualls had statistically similar numbers, while Lindell trailed with 36% to Klobuchar’s 53%.

All three GOP candidates had been seeking Trump’s backing. In December, Qualls nodded to the importance of the president’s endorsement: “We are seeking it, and if he does, then game over.”

Qualls’ campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Demuth’s campaign did not directly address the endorsement on Wednesday.

“I’m running to unite all corners of the party and deliver a victory in November up and down the ballot, and to save Minnesota from the radical and extreme Democrat agenda,” Demuth said in a statement.

Lindell’s endorsement came one day before Trump is expected to give a primetime address on voting machines and election security.

Both Trump and Lindell have repeatedly promoted the baseless theory that the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” to benefit of Democrat Joe Biden.

Lindell has faced legal and financial consequences since he became a leading proponent of the debunked theory, which prompted major retailers to drop MyPillow from shelves. He is facing a federal defamation suit from the voting technology company Smartmatic, which won a summary judgment against him last fall. He also was found liable for defaming Eric Coomer, a former Dominion Voting Systems executive, last summer.

The company formerly known as Dominion Voting Systems agreed to dismiss its long-running, $1.3 billion defamation suit against Lindell and MyPillow last month.

Lindell said he thinks Trump’s Thursday speech on election security will bring him “vindication [and] will show the American people so you can’t hide it anymore from the public.”

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