Minnesota has two major parties – the Democratic Farmer Labor Party and the Republican Party. That’s fewer than in the recent past, when there were four parties with that status. It’s important because it provides some built-in advantages come campaign season. The Forward Independence Party has high hopes of getting into the big leagues and showcased some of its candidates Thursday morning at the Capitol.

The party introduced Jay Reeves, an Army veteran who is running for state auditor, along with Kelly Doss, the owner of a coaching business, who is running for Republican Rep. Tom Emmer’s 6th District seat in Congress. Mike Newcome, a businessman, is running for governor with the Forward Independence Party. 

Tom Horner has been on a similar journey to the one Newcome just began. In 2010, Horner broke from the Republican party to run for Minnesota governor with the Forward Independence Party.  

Horner won nearly 12 percent of the vote that November, and the results for Republican Tom Emmer and Democrat Mark Dayton were so close that they triggered a recount. Ultimately, Dayton won that election. 

Tom Horner went on to found a PR firm and he writes about politics in Minnesota and beyond. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to explain this new dynamic of the 2026 race for governor along with MPR news reporter Peter Cox, who spoke with Moini about the Forward Independence Party’s origins and goals.