A fifth Republican candidate has announced their bid for the 2022 Minnesota gubernatorial race. State Senator Michelle Benson (R-Ham Lake) announced Wednesday morning that she will be running for Minnesota governor in 2022.
Benson made the announcement from Ham Lake, Minnesota, saying that she is running because of values that have been instilled in her since she was a child.
She has been elected four times, in 2010, 2012, 2016 and 2020, to serve in the Minnesota State Senate. According to her campaign website, “Her latest election saw her get more votes than any Republican senate candidate in the entire state.” She was additionally selected as the Minnesota Senate deputy majority leader position from 2017 to 2020.
Benson says she is “running to be the next Governor of Minnesota because our state, its people, and its business people need to know that our future is as bright as their dreams of it are. I will work with you to listen, understand your needs fully, craft a solution and move it forward so that we can leave Minnesota in a better condition that we found it in.”
Benson joins four other Republican candidates who have announced their own bids for governor in the 2022 race: Dr. Scott Jensen, Dr. Neil Shah, Mike Marty and Mike Murphy.
“An extreme agenda is dividing us with radical, leftist policies that aren’t Minnesotan. Trying to defund the police while crime rates are skyrocketing. Shutting down schools, and crippling neighborhood businesses, when the science and common sense says it’s safe to keep them open. I’ve seen enough, and it’s time to get to work,” Benson said.
Benson said she is an “unwavering conservative fighter” and that she will “prioritize public safety, empower parents in education, and lead an opportunity economy.”
Benson’s priorities include transparency within government, education with parents in charge, lowering taxes, prioritizing public safety, “common-sense” energy policies, election integrity, second amendment rights, protection of human life from conception until death, making families come first, competitive healthcare, and utilizing Minnesota’s natural resources.
“Minnesota should be a place where dreams can grow. Where families succeed. It will be hard work, but together, we can make Minnesota safer, better, and stronger. A brighter future for Minnesota starts right now. Let’s get to work,” Benson said.
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Hayley Tschetter is a reporter with The Minnesota Sun | Star News Network. Follow Hayley on Twitter or like her Facebook page. Send news tips to [email protected].
Photo “Michelle Benson” by Michelle Benson.
