Mike Lindell, Trump ally and MyPillow founder, running for Minnesota governor

Mike Lindell, a pillow salesman and election conspiracist, is running for governor of Minnesota, he announced Thursday.

Lindell, an ally of Donald Trump’s and major player in efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, joins a crowded Republican primary in the left-leaning state, where his pillow company, MyPillow, is headquartered.

Tim Walz, the Democratic governor, is running for a third term after a stint as the party’s vice-presidential nominee ended in defeat for the Democrats. He has faced criticism for his handling of a wide-ranging fraud scandal that took advantage of the state’s social services system, which is sure to be a feature of the 2026 governor’s race.

Related: ‘Somalis are the scapegoat’: fear rises as Trump targets Minneapolis community

Lindell, 64, has faced multiple defamation lawsuits over his false election claims and has been ordered to pay millions of dollars as a result. His finances are in a dire position, he has told the courts, because of what he called “lawfare”. He has not relented from his position that the 2020 election was stolen.

“Not only have I built businesses, you look at problem solution,” Lindell told the Associated Press as he announced his campaign. “I was able to make it through the biggest attack on a company, and a person, probably other than Donald Trump, in the history of our media ... lawfare and everything.”

Lindell told the Minnesota Star Tribune that Rudy Giuliani, the beleaguered former Trump lawyer who has also lost a defamation lawsuit, is advising his campaign and works for LindellTV because “he knows what he’s doing”.

Republicans haven’t won the governor’s race in Minnesota since 2006, though a third consecutive term for Walz would also be unprecedented. The state has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate since 1976, though not always by large margins.

The Republican field includes the state House speaker Lisa Demuth, the 2022 Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen, state lawmaker Kristin Robbins and others. Because of the crowded field, an endorsement from Trump could help a candidate break through. Lindell told the Star Tribune he told Trump he was considering a run, but he isn’t sure what the president will do.