MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell announced he will pay for a recount of the Minnesota Republican gubernatorial primary after losing the race by a double-digit margin on Tuesday. Lindell, one of the most prominent figures in the post-2020 election skepticism movement, finished well behind his opponent in the GOP contest.
The decision to request a recount despite a substantial margin of defeat is unusual, as recounts rarely change outcomes by more than a few hundred votes in statewide races. Minnesota law allows candidates to request a recount, with costs typically borne by the requesting party when the margin exceeds a certain threshold.
Lindell has spent years promoting unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen through voting machine manipulation, and his entrance into the Minnesota governor's race was seen as a test of that movement's electoral viability within a Republican primary. His loss by double digits suggests limited support among GOP primary voters for his candidacy.
The Republican primary winner will face the Democratic nominee in the November general election in Minnesota, a state that has not elected a Republican governor since 1990. The outcome of the Lindell recount request is not expected to affect the certified result given the size of the reported margin.
Left-Leaning Emphasis
- The Guardian and NBC News emphasize the irony of Lindell — who has spent years claiming elections are rigged — now challenging results of an election he participated in as a candidate.
- NBC News highlights the substantial margin of defeat, framing the recount as unlikely to change the outcome and raising questions about Lindell's motives.
- Left-leaning outlets contextualize the recount within Lindell's broader history of promoting election denial claims, suggesting the move is consistent with a pattern of undermining faith in elections.
Right-Leaning Emphasis
- The Washington Examiner reports the recount news in a more straightforward manner, focusing on Lindell's stated rationale and his legal right to request one.
- Right-leaning coverage gives more attention to the broader primary results and the Republican field heading into the general election, rather than centering on Lindell's election fraud history.