An internal poll from a conservative nonprofit group says Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth has a slight lead in the Republican primary for governor of Minnesota. The poll was obtained by Alpha News earlier this week.
Conducted by the Minnesota Private Business Council, the poll surveyed 1,601 likely Republican primary voters between June 23-25 and has a margin of error or 2.5%. Notably, the poll appears to have been conducted without the use of a professional polling firm.
According to the survey, 29.1% of respondents said they would vote for Demuth if the GOP gubernatorial primary were held today. Meanwhile, business executive Kendall Qualls got 23.9% of the vote, and MyPillow founder Mike Lindell got 20.4% of the vote.
However, 25.7% of those polled said they were “Unsure — I haven’t decided yet.” Of the undecided group, 55.9% said they were “completely undecided” while 17.1% leaned toward Demuth, 14.4% leaned toward Qualls, and 12.6% leaned toward Lindell.
When asked what they are looking for in a GOP candidate, 42.5% of respondents said they wanted a “Trump-aligned America First populist,” 22.7% wanted a “pragmatic conservative who can win swing voters”, and 10.5% wanted a “traditional pro-business conservative.”
Additionally, the poll tested how the three candidates fared after several statements about the candidates were read to poll respondents.
Statements about Demuth referred to her as the “House Speaker who held the line against Governor Walz’s agenda and is ready to lead from day one” but also mentioned Demuth’s decision to remain in the race despite pledging to support the GOP-endorsed candidate.
Qualls was described as “an Army veteran and business leader — a true political outsider who earned the Republican Party’s official endorsement at the state convention,” but the poll also noted that Qualls has run for office twice before and never won.
Meanwhile, the poll referred to Lindell as a “determined fighter and close ally of President Trump who refuses to bow to the political establishment” and mentioned that Lindell testified in court to “personally carrying more than $10 million in debt.”
After those statements were read, respondents were asked again who they would vote for if the GOP primary were held today. In total, 33.1% said Demuth, 31.2% said Qualls, 22.3% said Lindell, and 12.6% were still “unsure.”
The poll also asked respondents about their views on immigration, abortion, the economy, government spending, and other issues. Additionally, the survey inquired about voter preferences in the 2028 Republican presidential primary.
According to the poll, 47.4% of respondents said they would vote for Vice President J.D. Vance if the 2028 GOP presidential primary were held today. Meanwhile, 31.4% said they would vote for Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and 9.5% said they were unsure.
In a polling memo sent to its members, the Minnesota Private Business Council discussed the Republican primary for governor, saying, “absent a dramatic and unexpected shift in the dynamics of the race, this is shaping up to be a two-person contest between Demuth and Qualls for the 12.6% of voters still undecided — and the far larger share whose support is soft rather than locked in.”
The Minnesota Private Business Council is run by Jim Schultz, an attorney who was the 2022 Republican nominee for Minnesota attorney general. Among its board members is Mike McFadden, the 2014 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate.
On its website, the organization says it “works with leaders in government, business, and communities to advocate for policies that will lead to job growth, new business creation and entrepreneurship, and broad-based well-being for Minnesota’s workers and their families.”
The Minnesota Private Business Council poll stands in contrast to a June poll from KSTP/SurveyUSA which found Lindell in first place with 27%, Demuth in second place with 22%, and Qualls in third place with 17%.
Luke Sprinkel
Luke Sprinkel previously worked as a Legislative Assistant at the Minnesota House of Representatives. He grew up as a Missionary Kid (MK) living in England, Thailand, Tanzania, and the Middle East. Luke graduated from Regent University in 2018.
