Sen. Tina Smith won’t seek reelection in 2026, putting Minnesota seat up for grabs
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U.S. Sen. Tina Smith announced Thursday she will retire after next year, opting against a 2026 bid for another six-year term and putting a Democratic-held seat in play in an increasingly competitive Upper Midwest.
The decision comes after Smith had been conveying her plan to run again for a seat she has held since 2018. She has won two prior Senate elections, including a 5-percentage-point victory when last on the ballot in 2020. She had more than $700,000 in her campaign account to start the year.
"I have loved my job as United States Senator, and also, after 20 years of hard and rewarding work in the public sector, I'm ready to spend more time with my family," Smith said in a video announcing her decision. Smith added, "This decision is not political, it is entirely personal, but it's not lost on me that our country is in need of strong progressive leadership right now, maybe more than ever."
She said she would put her all into the final two years of the term and expressed confidence that a fellow Democrat from a "deep bench of political talent" in Minnesota would take her place after the next election.
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Just last week on MPR’s Politics Friday show, Smith reiterated her intention to seek another term. But she stopped short of being definitive when pressed.
“I always worked on the executive branch side. So I had to really learn what it meant to be a legislator. And I have found it tremendously rewarding. I am so grateful for the opportunity to do this work. I love doing the work,” Smith said last Friday. “It’s a lot harder, certainly, when you don’t have the power to accomplish what you want to accomplish, which is the case now.”
In 2024, Republicans gained enough Senate seats to give them 53 seats, wresting the majority that Democrats had had since 2021.
Reacting to Smith’s announcement on Thursday morning, her Minnesota colleague Sen. Amy Klobuchar issued a statement saying it’s been a “privilege” to work with Smith. “I’m lucky enough to call her not only a colleague, but a true friend,” Klobuchar wrote.
“Her quiet but effective governing style earned her the title the velvet hammer. While Tina and I will continue to work together for the next two years, our friendship and her legacy will last a lifetime.”
As a senator, Smith concentrated on a set of issues that didn’t always command attention, from laws affecting Native Americans to housing issues and farm policy. She also worked to reduce stigma on mental illness, going public with her own stories of dealing with depression.
Before her time in the Senate, Smith served as lieutenant governor under Gov. Mark Dayton, who appointed her to the Senate vacancy after Sen. Al Franken resigned. Smith, 66, also previously held roles as a gubernatorial chief of staff, a Minneapolis mayoral adviser and the state director of Planned Parenthood of Minnesota.
Originally from New Mexico, Smith made Minnesota her adopted home in the 1980s when she took a job in marketing at General Mills before gravitating toward a political career, mostly as a behind-the-scenes operator before joining Dayton as a running mate in his 2014 reelection campaign.
Smith and her husband, Archie, have two adult sons and four grandchildren — all living in Minneapolis.
Minnesota was already preparing for a blockbuster election in 2026 with races for governor, attorney general, auditor, secretary of state and every legislative seat on the ballot. Both the state House and Senate majorities could come down to a photo finish.
An open U.S. Senate seat could draw millions of dollars more into the state, which will mean stepped-up campaign field operations for both parties and an avalanche of ads aimed at voters.
While Democrats haven’t lost a statewide race since 2006, Republicans have gotten close to ending that streak several times, including razor-close finishes in two 2022 races.
With the expense of competitive U.S. Senate races, the dash to replace Smith will probably start immediately and could cause candidates looking at other offices to shuffle their plans.
One Republican, conservative podcaster Royce White, had already announced a 2026 Senate campaign after losing last year to Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
In a congratulatory social post on Threads, Lt. Gov Peggy Flanagan noted she plans to run for Senate, but a formal announcement would occur later in the month.
“I love Minnesota and my intention is to run for United States Senate and continue to serve the people of this state. I’ll make a formal announcement later this month. In the meantime, I’m talking with community and my family and friends. I will have more to say soon,” Flanagan said.
Smith said in the interview with MPR News last week that she felt good about Democratic chances next year, given that history is typically tough on a president’s party in the midterms.
Next year’s race comes midway through President Donald Trump’s second term, although there was a four-year gap between his tenures in the White House. In 2018, midway through Trump’s first term, Republicans gained two Senate seats but his party suffered steep U.S. House losses and Democrats took the majority.
“I suspect that a 2026 midterm election will be very good for Democrats. I think that people are going to be rejecting this kind of (Trump) leadership,” Smith said last week.
Including Minnesota, there are 35 Senate seats on the 2026 ballot. Most of them are currently held by Republicans in heavily GOP states.
Democrats are defending 13 seats. Michigan will also have an open seat due to a Democratic incumbent’s retirement.
