Outspent Two to One: How Peggy Flanagan Beat the Establishment
In a Newsweek interview, Flanagan explains how she won Minnesota's Democratic U.S. Senate primary after being outspent two to one.
Minnesota Democrats have chosen Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan as their candidate for the U.S. Senate, defeating Representative Angie Craig by a margin of 59% to 39.4%, according to the final vote count. Flanagan's campaign, which was characterized by a focus on messaging and grassroots organizing rather than advertising, saw her raise $6.4 million compared to Craig's $12.6 million.
While Craig secured endorsements from prominent Democrats like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Flanagan garnered support from Senator Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Flanagan's strategy involved holding over 300 events in 112 communities across the state, many of whom had never volunteered before, highlighting the impact of her door-to-door outreach.
Despite Craig raising nearly double the amount of money, Flanagan's campaign emphasized her opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza and her refusal of corporate PAC money, positioning her as a candidate more in tune with the desires of voters. Moving forward, Flanagan plans to continue her anti-PAC message and economic populist platform in her upcoming matchup against Republican nominee Michele Tafoya, who criticized Flanagan for voting with House Republicans.
Written by urgent.news from Newsweek's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
