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Tyler Kistner
Tyler Kistner (Republican Party) is running for election to the U.S. House to represent Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.[source]
Biography
Tyler Kistner was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. He served in the United States Marine Corps from 2011 to 2019. Kistner earned a bachelor's degree from New England College and a graduate degree from the University of Minnesota.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
General election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2
Matt Klein, Matt Little, Tyler Kistner, and Eric Pratt are running in the general election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Matt Klein (D) | |
 | Matt Little (D) | |
 | Tyler Kistner (R) | |
 | Eric Pratt (R) | |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Michael Stefanko (D)
- Angie Craig (D)
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2022
See also: Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election, 2022
General election
General election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2
Incumbent Angie Craig defeated Tyler Kistner and Paula Overby (Unofficially withdrew) in the general election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Angie Craig (D) | 50.9 | 165,583 |
| Tyler Kistner (R) | 45.6 | 148,576 | |
 | Paula Overby (Legal Marijuana Now Party) (Unofficially withdrew) | 3.3 | 10,728 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 585 | ||
| Total votes: 325,472 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Angie Craig advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Tyler Kistner advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
Grassroots-Legalize Cannabis Party of Minnesota primary election
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Patrick Bradley (Grassroots-Legalize Cannabis Party of Minnesota)
Legal Marijuana Now Party primary election
The Legal Marijuana Now Party primary election was canceled. Paula Overby advanced from the Legal Marijuana Now Party primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
2020
See also: Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election, 2020
Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election, 2020 (August 11 Republican primary)
Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election, 2020 (August 11 Democratic primary)
General election
General election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2
Incumbent Angie Craig defeated Tyler Kistner and Adam Weeks (Unofficially withdrew) in the general election for U.S. House Minnesota District 2 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Angie Craig (D) | 48.2 | 204,534 |
| Tyler Kistner (R) | 45.9 | 194,954 | |
| Adam Weeks (Legal Marijuana Now Party) (Unofficially withdrew) | 5.8 | 24,751 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 273 | ||
| Total votes: 424,512 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Angie Craig advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Tyler Kistner advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Regina Barr (R)
- Edward Moritz (R)
- Kerry Zeiler (R)
- Rick Olson (R)
- Erika Cashin (R)
Legal Marijuana Now Party primary election
The Legal Marijuana Now Party primary election was canceled. Adam Weeks advanced from the Legal Marijuana Now Party primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 2.
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Tyler Kistner has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Tyler Kistner asking him to fill out the survey. If you are Tyler Kistner, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?
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You can ask Tyler Kistner to fill out this survey by using the buttons below or emailing info@kistnerforcongress.com.
2022
Tyler Kistner did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign website
Kistner's campaign website stated the following:
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NATIONAL SECURITY The primary purpose of the federal government is to protect our nation so that all Americans can live in peace. As the leader of the free world, it’s America’s responsibility to maintain a security presence globally to protect freedom and U.S. interests. This forward presence helps keep our enemies off American shores. Congress needs to support the funding of our military and ensure that funding goes to the right places to enhance our national security. Our focus needs to be on the increase of our defense forces and cyber capabilities to ensure we maintain a clear strategic advantage for the 21st century battlefields, both on land and in the internet, while also protecting our borders to maintain peace and prosperity for our economy to flourish.
We also need to protect our communities from domestic threats. The “defund the police” movement has made America more dangerous and our communities less safe for families. Congress must work with state officials to support local law enforcement while we work to improve policing policies. This starts with close contact and coordination with State Elected Leaders to ensure law enforcement have the resources necessary to keep our communities safe.
Our youth are the future of this nation, and our future prosperity hinges on the development of the youth as a new generation of leaders, innovators and patriots. Focus needs to be put on our education system to ensure our students are getting the greatest education available to develop their knowledge, skills, professional character, and future aspirations and goals. The political indoctrination of our students in public schools must stop. Critical race theory is not an acceptable education system, especially not for our elementary school students. Students should be taught to work together, not to be segregated and divided by race. School boards need more control over education, not the federal government. This will enable each community to address local education issues without federal dictates. I am completely in favor of all types of school options – public, voucher, charter, parochial, private, and others. Every parent should have the choice to send their children to any school they so choose. We live in the best country in the world, and educational choice should be at the forefront of childhood development.
I’ve been fortunate to meet with so many everyday hardworking Minnesotan’s and their families in the 2nd District over the last several years. I’ve talked to small business owners and workers. All of their stories are important, and I will be a tireless advocate for our small businesses and workers in Congress to help set the conditions to allow our businesses and workforce grow. America’s principles have allowed our economy to grow and flourish, but lately our economy has become stacked against the hardworking everyday Americans. Our economy is being divided between the haves and the have-nots, with the government making the choice of who gets to prosper. Economic prosperity is not achieved through endless regulations and government spending; it is achieved through allowing individuals to start private businesses, grow their businesses, and succeed. We need to open up government control of our economy and ensure our small business owners and entrepreneurs receive the opportunity they need to grow their businesses and thrive. We need to serve our hardworking everyday Americans, with an economy that grows while cost of living and gas prices don’t.
I’ve been fortunate to meet with so many farmers in the 2nd District over the last several years. I’ve talked to dairy farmers, corn and soybean farmers, livestock farmers, and honeybee farmers. All of their stories are important, and I will be a tireless advocate for our family farmers in Congress. Our farmers need trade deals that are fair and give full access to new markets. The majority of the world market must be available to U.S. farmers, and Congress has done nothing lately to address this issue. My opponent Angie Craig claims to be a strong advocate for our farmers, but she delayed the USMCA from getting approved by more than six months because her priority was impeachment and not looking out for our farmers in the 2nd District. We also need to address our deteriorating infrastructure and expand rural broadband. Our rural communities need investment just as much as areas in the metro. And when it comes to the farm bill and federal programs for farmers, I’m in favor of them if they truly support our farmers and the ag community. As important as it is to have programs in the farm bill, it's just as important to cut harmful regulations to build a strong agricultural economy.
It’s the federal government’s responsibility to establish critical infrastructure across the country to enable economic growth and prosperity. We cannot ignore the government’s obligation to enhance the nation’s critical infrastructure which is outdated and degrading. But infrastructure means roads and bridges and railways, not the Democrat’s $3 trillion infrastructure bill that includes federal child care, electric car rebates and tax increases. Enhanced and improved infrastructure will foster greater economic growth for the nation, while simultaneously creating jobs across Minnesota and the country, but only if we spend it wisely.
A strong economy relies on global and regional trade agreements to allow small and large businesses to move their goods, services, and products into all markets with full and fair access. This must be done in a manner that protects American businesses and enables the economic growth and prosperity of our state and national economies. Greater access and fair trade in the globalized economy will continue to progress our economy and create more jobs and prosperity for our nation. We need to look at creating new trade agreements with regional partners while reforming the current ones we have with others. We also need to protect the nation and our businesses from corrupt foreign government practices which hurt our economy while strengthening theirs.
The rising cost of healthcare is a critical issue facing Minnesota families. We need to offer patients more choices, rein in skyrocketing costs, improve quality, and expand access to care. My plan is built on common sense, patient-focused solutions. We will lower healthcare prices by opening Health Savings Accounts, providing transparency in billing so patients know the true cost of care, and opening up state lines so consumers can get affordable and accessible healthcare no matter where they live. We will not go to a government controlled, single-payer healthcare system. For too long, Congress has failed to truly reform our healthcare system. We need to enact reforms that cut costs, expand choice, and puts patients first.
As a Marine veteran, healthcare for our veterans is a very personal issue for me. Every veteran who gets treated by the VA deserves the best quality of care available. Anything less is simply unacceptable because our men and women who served our Armed Forces and put their lives on the line should not be taken for granted. I support giving veterans the ability to choose medical care anywhere that makes sense for them, not just within the VA health facilities. Veterans gave America everything they could, so we need to make sure America gives them our best when they come home. In Congress, I will help our veterans by expanding healthcare choices for our veterans, introducing legislation to continue to expand benefits for veterans.
Medicare and Social Security ensure that Americans who have paid into these programs can continue to live their lives without concerns of having to return to the workforce. I will always protect and defend Medicare and Social Security, and I will vote against any changes that would cut these important programs for our seniors. While Angie Craig has played politics with these important programs, I will work to strengthen them. I’m committed to making sure that we eliminate waste and fraud within the programs, and people who abuse the system to take critical resources away from others should be punished. I will continue to fight to lower the costs of healthcare and prescription drug prices to make sure that seniors have affordable and accessible healthcare in Minnesota.
Our government spending continues to increase with constant need to raise the debt ceiling to allow politicians to increase the national deficit. This runaway spending needs to be stopped. We need to look at ways to cut waste, find more reforms in our national budget, and advocate for a reduction in our spending, not find ways to increase it. The more debt we accumulate, the more we are putting on our future generations to deal with. It’s time we take responsibility and act now to address this issue.
I am 100% pro-2nd Amendment. I firmly believe the Founding Fathers implemented the 2nd Amendment most importantly for self-protection. We live in a big hunting & fishing state, and we love embracing our state's heritage, but the purpose of the 2nd Amendment is to protect the rest of the Constitution. It’s not about hunting or even self-defense. It’s a constitutional right. Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. The problem with gun-restriction laws is that they make it harder for average law-abiding citizens to own guns while doing nothing to hinder criminals from buying guns on the streets or on the black market. We don’t need more gun-control in America, we need gun-education and stronger mental health awareness.
Washington is full of empty promises. Take my opponent Angie Craig for example. She promised not to take special interest money, but less than two years after taking office, nearly 40% of her campaign donations are from corporate special interests and lobbyists. That’s hundreds of thousands of dollars in broken promises. I’m not a politician. My life has been about service and integrity, and that is what I want to bring to Congress. As your Congressman, I will work to clean up Washington and serve the people’s interests, not the interests of the elites or big business. I will hold town hall events every month to ensure that your concerns are being heard in Washington, and I will never become a lobbyist. I also will support term limits on career politicians in Congress, because a service-oriented Congress requires that representatives remember where they came from and who they represent.[2] |
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| —Tyler Kistner's campaign website (2022)[3] | ||
2020
Tyler Kistner completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Kistner's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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- National Security
- Economic Prosperity
- Healthcare
In Teddy Roosevelt I learned how to conquer the spirit and push through adversity and doubt. His life is the example of hard work, determination, and bringing energy to politics. He was a new generation of servant leaders that took America into the 20th Century and put this nation on the level of other strong and influential nations of the time. The same type of servant leadership and energy is what our nation needs now more than ever. We need a new generation of political leaders to take the mantle of American leadership and carry it into the 21st Century.
Determination. To succeed at something, it requires determination. There will be doubts and difficulties but it's how you overcome the doubt with faith and push through the difficulties that define a person's character.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
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Candidate U.S. House Minnesota District 2 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on January 6, 2020
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Kistner for Congress, “Issues,” accessed August 27, 2022
