Lindell Refuses to Accept Minnesota GOP Primary Loss, Peddles Baseless Claims of Uncounted Votes
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Right-wing Republican Mike Lindell, notorious for spreading election misinformation, is refusing to concede defeat in Minnesota's GOP gubernatorial primary, making unsubstantiated claims about uncounted votes despite official certification of the results.
Mike Lindell, a former Trump ally and ex-My Pillow CEO known for fueling conspiracy theories, told reporters Tuesday he would not concede the Republican primary for Minnesota governor to House Speaker Lisa Demuth, even after the Associated Press called the race for her. Lindell, echoing the right’s familiar playbook of undermining democratic processes, claimed that about 265,000 votes cast on Election Day had not yet been counted and that the margin of his defeat could be overturned.
"The AP? Why would I listen to the AP? There's 265,000 votes left to count. I'm down by 18,000 now. We just gained 5,000. I'm not going to give up this race until the votes are counted," Lindell said, continuing to sow doubt in the electoral system without evidence.
The Associated Press declared Demuth the winner at 11:26 p.m., and the Minnesota Secretary of State confirmed all precincts were tallied by the following morning. Official results showed Demuth with 179,546 votes (43%) and Lindell with 134,198 votes (32%), a clear margin.
Lindell, refusing to accept reality, said he would review the final batch of votes and questioned the state's computerized counting system, pushing for paper ballots—a tactic often used to cast suspicion on secure, modern voting methods. He vaguely mentioned his team had found "a couple of anomalies," but, as usual, provided no specifics.
The Lindell campaign did not immediately confirm whether he would continue to withhold concession, but a spokesperson said a statement was planned for Thursday. No further comments from Lindell have been reported since the primary.
Demuth will face Democratic U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar in the November gubernatorial election, where voters will have a chance to reject the politics of denial and conspiracy.