Progressive Matt Little wins Democratic primary to replace Rep. Angie Craig

Briana Bierschbach, Star Tribune on Aug 11, 2026

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Matt Little, a former mayor of Lakeville and former state senator, emerged as the winner of the three-way Democratic primary in the Second District to replace Rep. Angie Craig.

By electing Little, Democrats in the district sent a powerful message that they’re moving in a more progressive direction after seven years of Craig’s leadership as a moderate Democrat in Congress.

Little will now face Republican state Sen. Eric Pratt in November in what’s historically been a swing district.

Craig’s decision to run for the U.S. Senate created a crowded primary for her seat. Little had been locked in a battle with fellow progressive Democrat state Rep. Kaela Berg and state Sen. Matt Klein, a moderate Democrat who believed his brand of centrist politics made him the best equipped to hold the seat in November.

On the campaign trail, Little mixed a brash, in-your-face style of politics with personal stories about his mother’s struggle with chronic illness and his wife’s story as an Asian American immigrant. It connected him to voters who appeared energized by health care and immigration reform.

His overwhelming victory at the Second District DFL convention buoyed him to front-runner status in the race. He led in recent polling and won the backing of big-name progressives like Rep. Pramila Jayapal and the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC.

The closing weeks of the primary campaign had been dominated by an influx of outside spending for all candidates, but most significantly to Klein, who benefited from millions from 314 Action, a political action committee that supports Democratic doctors and scientists.

The last-minute spending indicated 314 Action’s donors may have been worried that one of the progressive Democrats could face an uphill climb against Pratt, given the district includes a mix of suburbs, exurbs and rural farmland.

Debates around immigration, Medicare for All and the conflict in Gaza had dominated the race and served as litmus tests for the candidates.

Little and Berg were strong supporters of Medicare for All and called the conflict in Gaza a genocide, both of which Klein disagreed with.

Each of the candidates took firm stands on President Donald Trump’s immigration actions, especially after Operation Metro Surge. They all said they would not have voted for the Laken Riley Act, a bill that allows law enforcement to detain and possibly deport undocumented immigrants arrested for nonviolent crimes. Craig supported that bill in 2025, and it became a vulnerability in the U.S. Senate race.

Outside spending for Klein had Little and Berg speculating that the money was coming from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) — an influential lobbying group that advocates for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship and backs Democrats and Republicans, given 314 Action’s past ties to the group.

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