US EditionEx-Sunday Night Football Broadcaster Exploring Run for Senate
Michele Tafoya, a former NBC Sports reporter, is a potential Republican candidate to replace retiring Sen. Tina Smith, possibly shifting Minnesota's Senate race dynamics.
- Last week, Michele Tafoya met with NRSC officials in Washington, D.C., and is weighing a Minnesota Senate bid that would challenge retiring Sen. Tina Smith, a source said.
- After leaving NBC in early 2022 following the Super Bowl, Michele Tafoya moved into conservative media, launching a right-wing podcast and co-chairing the Kendall Qualls campaign.
- In an October Substack post after speaking with Rudy Boschwitz, former U.S. senator, Tafoya suggested she was weighing a run, while a Craig campaign internal memo shows testing this summer amid career-change speculation.
- Republicans view Tafoya as a recruit who could force Democrats to defend the seat next year, while Democrats face a contentious primary including Rep. Angie Craig in Minnesota.
- Minnesota Republicans say speculation she would run has increased in recent weeks, and Vin Weber and others describe her potential candidacy as a frequent topic in recent weeks.
12 Articles
12 Articles
Michele Tafoya isn't in the Senate race yet, but she’s been trolling
WASHINGTON – Speculation about Michele Tafoya entering the race for retiring U.S. Sen. Tina Smith’s seat has heated up in the past few days, but the former sports broadcaster has been attacking Democrats vying for that seat for a while on social media. Tafoya, who launched her own podcast after retiring from football coverage in 2022, has aligned mostly with GOP policies, though she has characterized herself as a “pro-choice conservative with li…
Broadcaster Tafoya weighs Minnesota Senate bid
Longtime broadcaster Michele Tafoya is seriously looking at a GOP Senate bid in Minnesota and met with National Republican Senatorial Committee officials last week, a person familiar with the conversations told Semafor. Tafoya’s candidacy has been on the back burner for months as Republicans largely focused elsewhere, and in the ensuing few months a tough Democratic primary has bubbled up between Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and Rep. Angie Craig, D-M…
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