SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Tight Senate races in Texas, Iowa and Kansas are getting a lot of attention during this year's midterm elections. But Minnesota also has a close race, and Peter Cox from Minnesota Public Radio joins us now. Thanks so much for being with us.
PETER COX, BYLINE: Good morning, Scott.
SIMON: Please tell us who's running and why this race has maybe been a little overlooked nationally.
COX: So Peggy Flanagan, a progressive Democrat who's been lieutenant governor in Minnesota for the last eight years, is up against Republican Michele Tafoya, who spent years as a sideline reporter for Monday Night Football and Sunday Night Football. And they're battling for a seat that's been held by Democrats since 2009. Recent polls have shown the two neck and neck, though Flanagan had a 4% edge in the most recent one.
But normally, such a tight margin would mean political parties would be pouring money into this race. But that's not what's happening here. This election, Republicans are facing challenges in what would be reliably red states, so they've been putting their money into shoring up those races instead. And that seems to be a big reason why Minnesota's race has been much quieter, even though it's one of several that could determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.
SIMON: President Trump indicated this week he might make a trip to Minnesota. How big a factor has President Trump been in this race?
COX: Yeah. Like many of these midterm races we're seeing nationwide, President Trump is a major factor. Tafoya, who has never held public office before, said when she announced her candidacy she'd be honored to have his endorsement. But in recent months, she's tried to distance herself from Trump. And that became tougher this week when Trump was speaking at a campaign rally in Ohio, and he railed against members of Minnesota's Somali community who he said were looting Minnesota welfare programs. He then implored people to get out and vote for Tafoya.
During a debate yesterday, Tafoya was asked whether she'd campaign with Trump if he comes to Minnesota, and she didn't answer the question. Peggy Flanagan has consistently said Tafoya would be a lapdog for Trump and was quick to point out how Tafoya only recently has tried to distance herself from the president in this campaign.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PEGGY FLANAGAN: Minnesotans are smarter than this new version of Michele Tafoya who has shown up in the final weeks of this campaign. Give me a break.
SIMON: Governor Tim Walz's administration has gotten a lot of heat over the fraud that you mentioned. Has this extended to Lieutenant Governor Flanagan, who, after all, is his second in command?
COX: Yes. About 70 people have been convicted of bilking millions of dollars from state programs in the last few years, and questions have been raised about why the Walz administration didn't respond more quickly. During the debate, Tafoya was quick to point the finger at Flanagan.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MICHELE TAFOYA: This historic fraud happened under her watch, and suddenly, she's looking out for Medicaid and SNAP? Sell it to someone else, Peggy.
COX: Now, Flanagan says the issue was not under her purview as lieutenant governor.
SIMON: The Trump administration cited this fraud as one reason for the increased immigration crackdowns in Minnesota last winter. Is that enforcement surge playing a role in this race?
COX: Well, the monthlong surge has been eclipsed recently by other issues like the economy and cost of living, but it's definitely still resonating. And Flanagan has commended the large-scale protests against ICE in Minnesota and has called for the agency to be dismantled. Now, Tafoya has criticized the rollout of the enforcement surge and called the fatal shootings of Americans Renee Good and Alex Pretti by immigration agents devastating. But she also criticized the protests and said local leaders encouraged them.
SIMON: Peter, any signs this race might get a last-minute influx of outside spending, as we've seen elsewhere?
COX: Well, the president talking about this race this week, saying he might visit, could put it more front and center for some. But we haven't seen any big changes in political spending here in the last few days. About two weeks ago, U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune came to stump for Tafoya at a farm in Southern Minnesota. And when he was asked whether the political action committee he helps run - the Senate Leadership Fund - would give Tafoya a funding boost, he was noncommittal. And we still haven't seen much national money flowing in to support either candidate. We're a little more than two weeks out from the election, so the runway for that kind of investment in this race is getting pretty short.
SIMON: Peter Cox of Minnesota Public Radio. Thanks so much for being with us.
COX: You're welcome.
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