Who Will Replace Klobuchar In The U.S. Senate? These Names Are Being Floated

ST. PAUL, MN — Gov.-elect Amy Klobuchar's win over Republican House Speaker Lisa Demuth on Tuesday leaves Minnesota with a U.S. Senate seat to fill, and a few prominent DFLers are already being mentioned as possible successors.

The possible contenders include U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, who lost the DFL Senate primary to Peggy Flanagan in August, U.S. Rep. Kelly Morrison and Secretary of State Steve Simon, MPR News reported.

Other current or former elected officials, including big-city mayors, could also be considered. University of Minnesota political scientist Kathryn Pearson told the station she expects the pick to be someone with statewide or congressional experience who is ready to start right away.

The station also noted that the appointee would run as the incumbent in a November 2027 special election, which could be the only U.S. Senate race on the ballot that year.

The Washington Examiner described Craig as the most likely choice. The Star Tribune reported in August that political observers were floating Craig, Morrison and Simon, and that Klobuchar said she wouldn't decide whether to make the appointment herself until after the election.

Klobuchar hasn't publicly named a choice. She said in Moorhead on Oct. 6 that she's "clearly interested in having a thorough process" to choose an interim senator who would serve about a year, InForum reported.

Who makes the appointment depends on when Klobuchar resigns, FOX 9 reported.

If she leaves the Senate before her inauguration, Gov. Tim Walz would make the pick, though he could decline and leave the seat open until she takes office and fills it herself. If she waits until she takes office, the choice is hers. Walz said in February that he would rather "eat glass" than serve out the term himself.

The appointee wouldn't automatically keep the job or become the DFL nominee. State law requires a special primary and a special election, and the winner would serve the rest of Klobuchar's term, which ends in January 2031.

Minnesota last saw this process in 2017, when then-Gov. Mark Dayton appointed Tina Smith to replace Al Franken. Smith won a special election the next year and is now retiring. Flanagan was projected the winner of that seat Tuesday, so Minnesota will have two new senators.