U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar is the overwhelming favorite to win the DFL nomination for governor of Minnesota later this year. She has millions in campaign cash and won the DFL’s endorsement for governor with 68% of the vote on the first ballot last month.
While several Democrats have filed to run against Klobuchar in the August primary for governor, none have remotely the same name ID or fundraising ability as Klobuchar. In short, Klobuchar is the presumptive DFL nominee for governor.
However, one DFL candidate running against Klobuchar managed to win 27% of the vote during the DFL’s gubernatorial endorsement process. That candidate was Kobey Layne, a man who identifies as a woman.
Layne and Klobuchar were the only two candidates to compete for the DFL endorsement for governor at the party’s convention in Rochester.
DFL State Rep. Leigh Finke, a transgender lawmaker, nominated Layne to compete for the gubernatorial endorsement from the floor of the convention. Leading up to the DFL convention, Layne was endorsed by Stonewall DFL, an official caucus of the Minnesota DFL.
In its endorsement, Stonewall DFL said “Senator Klobuchar has refused to screen with our Board before the 2026 State Convention, and has not taken a stance on whether she will protect 2SLGBTQIA+ Minnesotans from ongoing attacks from the federal government. We are deeply disappointed in both of these decisions.”
Alpha News contacted Stonewall DFL to ask if it is still supporting Layne in the wake of Klobuchar winning the DFL endorsement. However, the LGBT group did not answer a media inquiry prior to publication.
Despite losing the DFL endorsement to Klobuchar, Layne filed to run against Klobuchar in the August primary. While Klobuchar is expected to easily win the primary, Layne’s vote share could be a measurement of left-wing discontent with Klobuchar.
Alpha News contacted the Klobuchar campaign and the Layne campaign for this story but did not hear back prior to a publication deadline.
Who is Kobey Layne?
Layne is a 26-year-old man who identifies as a woman. He is an assistant store manager for AVEDA, a company that sells hair products. According to Layne’s website, he received a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Minnesota in 2022.
Layne was previously a Republican staffer in the Minnesota Senate and worked for GOP State Sen. Jim Abeler as Abeler’s legislative assistant.
However, Layne’s website says he “left the Republican Party in 2022 after realizing that the [GOP’s] values do not truly align with her own and refused to campaign for them.” Layne was “laid off from the Minnesota Senate after the 2022 election[s].”
According to his campaign website, Layne supports ranked choice voting, single-payer healthcare, a 2% wealth tax on people with assets valued at $10 million or more, guaranteed universal childcare, and returning state land to American Indians.
Additionally, Layne wants to “expand sex education to include LGBTQIA2S+ topics,” decriminalize prostitution, and “prevent physicians from using age as a reason not to perform reproductive surgeries.”
Meanwhile, Klobuchar has rolled out a campaign platform that is focused on modernizing state government, addressing fraud, and streamlining the home-building and purchasing process. She has previously expressed opposition to new taxes.
As such, Layne has positioned himself to the left of Klobuchar in the DFL primary.
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.
