$8.3 million raised in the race for Minnesota governor


The general election for Governor of Minnesota will take place on Nov. 7, 2022. In total, candidates running for Minnesota governor have raised $8.3 million, received $27,100 in loans, and spent $4.1 million between Jan. 1, 2021, and Mar. 31, 2022. The Democratic and Republican primaries are on Aug. 8, 2022.

Here’s the breakdown for the 11 candidates who are still in the running:

Active Gubernatorial Candidates’ Campaign Finance, 1/1/2021- 3/31/2022

CandidatePartyContributionsLoansExpendituresElection Stage
Tim Walz (Incumbent)Democratic$4,650,631.16$0.00$1,838,105.67Primary
Paul GazelkaRepublican$693,380.50$0.00$384,929.20Primary
Scott JensenRepublican$1,490,673.73$0.00$747,543.54Primary
Joyce LaceyRepublican$0.00$0.00$0.00Primary
Scott MagieRepublican$285.89$0.00$284.89Primary
Michael MurphyRepublican$72,365.09$0.00$70,238.59Primary
Kendall QuallsRepublican$545,395.75$0.00$368,195.50Primary
Dr Shah NeilRepublican$303,398.22$0.00$280,987.27Primary
Richard StanekRepublican$149,052.67$0.00$108,850.80Primary
Hugh McTavishIndependence of Minnesota$0.00$0.00$0.00General
Cory HepolaIndependent$31,294.93$0.00$6,200.92General

The remaining $326,594 raised in the race for Minnesota governor went to candidates who have withdrawn.

Total fundraising in nine gubernatorial races in the 2022 election cycle

A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for re-election and number of candidates in a race, can influence donor activity. Here is how total fundraising by all candidates for Minnesota governor compares to the eight other gubernatorial races with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA for the 2022 election cycle:

RankStateTotal DonationsTotal CandidatesActive CandidatesElection StageAvailable Reporting Period
1Florida$106,753,1151210Primary Election1/1/2021 – 3/31/2022
2Texas$72,717,055245General Election1/1/2021 – 5/14/2022
3Pennsylvania$55,727,674205General Election1/1/2021 – 6/16/2022
4Arizona$24,376,8841512Primary Election1/1/2021 – 3/31/2022
5Ohio$22,113,46895General Election1/1/2021 – 6/3/2022
6Michigan$20,716,429167Primary Election1/1/2021 – 4/20/2022
7California$13,997,678322General Election1/1/2021 – 5/21/2022
8Wisconsin$13,933,407109Primary Election1/1/2021 – 3/13/2022
9Minnesota$8,263,0721411Primary Election1/1/2021 – 3/30/2022

The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active Minnesota candidate PACs submitted to the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.

Report NameReport Due Date
2022 Jan Annual1/31/2022
2022 Q14/14/2022
2022 Q26/14/2022
2022 Jul Semiannual7/25/2022
2022 Q39/27/2022
2022 Q410/31/2022
2022 Jan Annual1/31/2023

This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.