It was an eventful off-year election across the country.

In Minnesota, St. Paul elected a new mayor, state Rep. Kaohly Her. It was in a surprise repudiation of the incumbent, Mayor Melvin Carter.  Across the river, Minneapolis voters gave their mayor, Jacob Frey, another term.  

As the dust settles from the the 2025 election, momentum for the 2026 midterms is picking up. Minnesota will see an election as big as they come as voters will elect a governor, a new U.S. senator, key positions from the attorney general to the secretary of state, eight members of the U.S. House and the entire state Legislature — which is now as closely divided as ever. 

MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst and a pair of political analysts look back at this week’s voting and look ahead to what’s in store next year. 

Later in the hour, a Republican U.S. Senate candidate will make his case on why he’s running and what he’ll have to navigate to reach the fall ballot. 

Then, a recap on state politics where two political reporters make their politics panel debut. 

Guests:

• Chas Anderson is the co-CEO and senior principal at Park Street Public and a longtime Republican strategist.

• Todd Rapp is the president and CEO at Rapp Strategies and a veteran DFL strategist.

• Adam Schwarze is U.S. Marine veteran and former Navy SEAL seeking the Republican nomination for Minnesota’s U.S. Senate seat.

• Peter Cox is a correspondent for MPR News.

• Michelle Griffith is a reporter for the Minnesota Reformer.

• Nathaniel Minor is a reporter for the Minnesota Star Tribune.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation or subscribe to the Politics Friday podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or RSS.