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Former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya was defeated in her bid for Minnesota’s Senate seat, losing comfortably to Lt. Gov Peggy Flanagan as Democrats swept nationwide.
Tafoya, the Republican nominee, trailed Flanagan by roughly 10 points with 80% of the vote reporting. NBC called the race for Flanagan shortly after midnight.
Tafoya worked for over a decade as Sunday Night Football’s primary sideline reporter for NBC. Before that, she worked as a sideline reporter for Monday Night Football and also did play-by-play and studio host duties for various ESPN telecasts.
Major news organizations projected Democrats to take control of both the Senate and House. Democrats needed to flip four Senate seats to retake the chamber, and picked up races in North Carolina, Texas, Ohio, Kansas, and Iowa before the clock struck midnight Tuesday.
Meanwhile, former Rangers and Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira hung on to secure victory in a race he was expected to win easily over Democrat Kristin Hook. The AP called the race for Teixeira as he led by 10 points shortly after midnight local time.
Teixeira was able to survive a blue wave in Texas, as Democrats James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa were elected to the Senate and governor’s mansion.
In the lead up to election night in Minnesota, Tafoya appeared to be bucking the national swing toward Democrats, polling just behind Flanagan even as some of the same surveys showed Democrats in redder states far ahead of their opponents. But, as Democrats gained massively in areas won by President Donald Trump in 2024, the national blue tsunami proved far too strong for Tafoya to overcome.
Tafoya conceded the race on election night, saying at a campaign event that she called Flanagan to congratulate her. “The voters spoke, so we’re going to respect the voters,” Tafoya said.
During the campaign, Tafoya raked in donations from her former sports colleagues, according to an FOS analysis of FEC records. Those contributions came from a plethora of owners, former players, and media personalities.
At least seven principal owners gave to Tafoya, including Vikings owners Mark and Zygi Wilf and Wild owner Craig Leipold. Tafoya also received support from Sunday Night Football rules analyst and former NBC colleague Terry McAulay and NBA legend John Stockton.
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