Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar announced her run for Minnesota governor early Thursday. There is already a crowded field of Republicans in a race...

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Sen. Amy Klobuchar announced her run for Minnesota governor early Thursday with a video posted on X, following Gov. Tim Walz's recent announcement that he was ending his bid for a third term in the role.

"Minnesotans, we've been through a lot," Klobuchar said in the video, going on to recount several tragedies the state has faced in recent months, including the separate shootings of two American citizens by ICE agents.

"We cannot sugarcoat how hard this is," she said. "But in these moments of enormous difficulty, we find strength in our Minnesota values of hard work, freedom and simple decency and goodwill."

"I believe we will stand up for what's right and fix what's wrong," Klobuchar added before making it official. "That's why, today, I'm announcing my candidacy for governor of Minnesota."

Klobuchar, who won a fourth Senate term in 2024, has racked up double-digit wins in each of her races. In 2020, she ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign among a crowded field of Democratic candidates.

When Minnesota's Democratic Gov. Tim Walz announced that he would drop his bid for reelection, the idea of Klobuchar entering the race began to emerge.

"I like my job very much," Klobuchar told Minnesota Public Radio on Wednesday, ahead of Thursday's announcement. "And Minnesota has given me this honor of serving them in the Senate. But I love my state more."

Walz faced criticism from state Republicans to President Trump for allegations of rampant social-services fraud on his watch. There is no evidence that Walz took part in the fraud or committed any other crimes, but his political opponents say that he failed to stop the wholesale theft of taxpayer funds during his time in office.

As a sitting governor, Walz was not facing any competition from other Democratic hopefuls. Yet more than a dozen Republicans are in the governor's race, including House Speaker Lisa Demuth, the state's top Republican, businessman Kendall Qualls, state Rep. Kristin Robbins and My Pillow founder and CEO Mike Lindell.