Navy veteran and former U.S. House candidate Tom Weiler announced Friday that he will seek the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate next year.
Democratic Sen. Tina Smith announced earlier this year she won’t seek a new term.
“I think the Trump Administration has made great strides both for our national security and our economy,” Weiler said in an interview with Twin Cities News Talk on Friday morning. “But I think there’s a lot more to do, and we need more senators to help push those conservative policies forward.”
Weiler will compete with former basketball star Royce White and former Navy Seal Adam Schwarze for the Republican endorsement next spring. On the Democratic side, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and Congresswoman Angie Craig are vying for the DFL nomination.
Weiler, Schwarze and White all familiar with running for federal office
Weiler, a 1996 Eden Prairie graduate, first entered the Minnesota political landscape in 2022 when he launched a campaign for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District.
Weiler ultimately won the Republican endorsement in that race and then went on to lose to then-incumbent Dean Phillips in the general election. Schwarze also ran for the Third District in 2022, but his aspirations were cut short by an issue related to the timing of his retirement from the Navy.
White, who was a star basketball player in college and competed in the NBA, lost a U.S. Senate bid in 2024 against Amy Klobuchar. He announced that same week he would run again in 2026.
Learning to solve problems ‘through the periscope’
Weiler operated submarines all over the globe for the Navy following his education at Notre Dame. His Navy career came to an end in 2021 when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
Weiler told radio host Jon Justice on Friday morning that he decided to jump back into the political arena because he’s convinced that there are too many lawyers and not enough real-world problem solvers in the Senate.
“I had the opportunity to serve around the world. I actually served in the vicinity of or underneath our most formidable adversaries,” Weiler said, listing off China, Russia, North Korea and Iran.
“I developed a unique understanding of national security by looking at it through the periscope,” he added.
Following his Navy retirement, Weiler spent a few years working at the Pentagon, where he focused on cybersecurity and border security issues.
Since his 2022 campaign for U.S. House, he said he’s been keeping busy with defense contract work, but still has an urge to serve Minnesota in elected office.
“I love this country, I love Minnesota, and I want to leave them both in better shape than they were when I got here.”
Hank Long
Hank Long is a journalism and communications professional whose writing career includes coverage of the Minnesota legislature, city and county governments and the commercial real estate industry. Hank received his undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, where he studied journalism, and his law degree at the University of St. Thomas. The Minnesota native lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and four children. His dream is to be around when the Vikings win the Super Bowl.
