Klobuchar, Demuth face off in final Minnesota governor debate

ROCHESTER, Minn. (FOX 9) - Candidates for Minnesota governor, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth faced off Wednesday night in the final debate before the Nov. 3 general election. 

The full debate can be watched above, and a clip of opening and closing statements, along with clips of each question can be found below.

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Opening statements from Demuth, Klobuchar

Minnesota Speaker of the House Lisa Demuth called Minnesota a "state in crisis" in her opening statement while mentioning Somali gang violence, declining test scores and increasing taxes. 

Sen. Amy Klobuchar said she will root out fraud, saying she "hates" the status quo and wants to move the state forward, not "left or right."

Fraud in Minnesota

Demuth said she would combat fraud in the state by firing all commissioners and hiring new commissioners, and went on to say that whistleblowers within the state government have been shut down for too long. 

Klobuchar opened by saying she is going to send fraudsters to jail, and stated that Gov. Tim Walz should have done more about fraud. She also referenced times she helped with fraud as a U.S. Senator, specifically getting the U.S. attorney more prosecutors to prosecute the fraud cases. 

Affordability in Minnesota

The candidates addressed housing affordability and the rising cost of living in Minnesota and nationwide. 

Demuth said she supports ending the tax on Social Security, so that seniors can afford the homes they're in. 

Klobuchar said she is "100% committed" to working with the private sector to build 100,000 new housing units by the end of her term. 

Healthcare and cancer treatments

Klobuchar says she supports making cancer screenings very inexpensive or free if she were to be governor. Klobuchar says she supports the Affordable Care Act, and then criticized President Donald Trump, saying 8 million Americans have been bumped off since he came into office. 

Demuth had a similar message to Klobuchar on making cancers more readily available to Minnesotans, especially in rural Minnesota. 

Gang and group violence

Klobuchar has a strong stance on gang violence in Minnesota, saying she would bring in more police officers and working with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA). 

Demuth started by saying she is the only candidate endorsed by law enforcement. She said she would make a gang task force that would be compromised of state, local and federal officials. 

Childcare in Minnesota

Klobuchar spoke on streamlining funding coming into the state for childcare and finding more unique ways to implement more childcare opportunities in the state. 

Demuth didn't address how she would fix the childcare crisis in the state, and more so focused on fraud in childcare and compared Klobuchar to Gov. Walz, bashing her for reportedly calling Walz an "incredible governor."

Gun safety 

Klobuchar accused Demuth of lying in her response to the Annunciation School and Church Shooting. Klobuchar said that Demuth would give a vote for the gun safety package in the Minnesota legislature, that she would allow for a vote no matter how she voted on it, and Klobuchar said Demuth did not do that. 

Demuth said she did not lie, saying, "I said bills will be introduced, they will go through the process and they be voted on." 

Helping farmers

The candidates spoke about their plans to help Minnesota farmers with rising costs and tariffs. 

AI data centers

Klobuchar said that the local communities should decide on whether data centers should be built in their cities and towns. She also said that residents should not be footing the electric bill for companies that are getting the benefit of the data centers. She also spoke on protecting communities' water, and how the agreements for data centers should not be "cloaked in secrecy." 

Demuth agreed that protecting consumer energy prices is important, and she agreed that the local community should decide on data centers and that there should be transparency. 

Copper-sulfide mining ban

Klobuchar says that she will protect Boundary Waters, and said she would review Gov. Walz's copper-sulfide mining ban. 

Demuth said the executive order that banned the mining should have never happened, and advocated for safe mining in Minnesota. 

Closing statements

Demuth highlighted how she is a "regular Minnesotan" and that she respects people in her own workforce, and accused Klobuchar of being "demeaning" to people that work for Klobuchar. Demuth says she wants to improve education, combat fraud and protect taxpayers' money. 

Klobuchar said she wants to put Minnesota first, and said she doesn't want the first woman governor to have such an "extreme view" on reproductive healthcare, referencing Demuth wanting to ban abortions in Minnesota, with no exceptions for incest or rape. Klobuchar also spoke on bringing down costs and cutting through red tape. 

Analysis of the debate

Wednesday night's gubernatorial debate focused heavily on affordability, with Amy Klobuchar and Lisa Demuth offering differing approaches to gas prices, housing and health care. Political experts say both candidates found areas of agreement, but also left some major questions unanswered. 

Major takeaways: 

• Klobuchar connected rising gas prices to the war in Iran and argued that ending the conflict would provide the fastest relief.
• Demuth blamed Minnesota's higher costs on government spending, the state's automatic gas-tax increase and opposition to the Keystone pipeline.
• Experts said Klobuchar made the more immediate case on gas prices, while Demuth missed an opportunity to emphasize her proposals to reduce vehicle-tab fees and limit gas-tax increases.

Housing was another heated topic during Wednesday night's gubernatorial debate. 

Major takeaways: 

• Both candidates agreed Minnesota needs more housing and fewer permitting and regulatory barriers.
• Klobuchar proposed working with the private sector to build 100,000 new housing units, from apartment buildings to single-family homes, and said she supports modular and manufactured housing.
• Demuth emphasized reducing regulations, property taxes and taxes on Social Security.
• But political experts said neither candidate fully addressed how high mortgage interest rates are preventing younger Minnesotans from buying homes.

Health care remains a big topic, with voters worried about health care costs and being able to afford insurance. Both Amy Klobuchar and Lisa Demuth agreed that health care should be affordable and accessible, including in rural Minnesota.

Major takeaways: 

• Klobuchar emphasized the Affordable Care Act, cancer screenings and her work addressing pharmaceutical costs.
• Demuth focused on rural access, eligibility requirements and the need for health care services outside the state's largest cities.
• Political experts say the debate left unresolved how much Minnesota can do on its own versus what requires federal action.
• Abortion also emerged as an issue, although political experts said Demuth did not directly answer Klobuchar's criticism of her record.

Minnesota governor's race: Klobuchar vs. Demuth 

Why you should care:

Minnesota has an open governor's race for the first time since 2018 after Democrat Gov. Tim Walz decided not to seek a third term. The Minnesota governor's race will likely make history because if either Klobuchar or Demuth wins, the voters will be electing the state's first woman governor. 

The backstory:

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat, is in her fourth Senate term. She was the first woman to represent Minnesota in the position, first running in 2006 after a career as a Hennepin County prosecutor. She briefly ran a presidential campaign in 2020. Since winning her first election in 2006, she has risen to 14th in the Senate in seniority, and the third Democrat in Senate party leadership.

Republican Lisa Demuth has served as speaker of the Minnesota House since 2024, the first Black lawmaker to serve in that role, and served as minority leader before that. She was first elected to the House in 2018. Prior to that, she was a small business owner and served on the Rockville, Cold Spring, and Richmond (ROCORI) school board. If Demuth wins the election, she will also become the first Black governor of Minnesota, according to data from the National Governor's Association. 

Minnesota has not had a Republican governor since Tim Pawlenty, who left office in 2011. The GOP has not won a statewide election in Minnesota in 20 years, when Pawlenty won the 2006 election. 

2026 ElectionsAmy KlobucharLisa DemuthMinnesotaPolitics