The Seeds of Victory: What I Saw on the 2024 Campaign Trail

This was not an ordinary election for Minnesota. For one, Democrat Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz carried his own state by just four percent (lower than Biden’s 2020 run) and returned defeated, still governor—to a now divided state government. As Minnesota Family Council’s Elections Associate, this election gave me a taste of what the church and ordinary believers can do when we get involved in defending the family in the public square. I believe this election represents a fundamental shift for both our nation and state and an open door for the church to further its cultural impact.

For the last two years, the progressive trifecta in St. Paul (control of the Governorship, Senate, and House) cast a shadow over Minnesota, passing radical abortion and gender “affirmation” laws that harm the most innocent and vulnerable among us—our children. A common sentiment among conservative circles had folks looking forward to the day when they would move to a more family-friendly state, doubtful things would ever turn around.

But this election turned out much different than many people expected: legislators were retiring, social demographics were shifting across our state, and for the first time, the national spotlight on our governor revealed to so many the true colors of his and others’ progressive agenda. So, with the Minnesota House up for reelection, we launched our largest-ever, state-wide voter engagement initiative with a simple goal: to win a pro-family victory in the Minnesota House.

The North Star’s New Chapter

In July, I was brought on to help implement key aspects of our get-out-the-vote strategy, including building and leading a grassroots ground-game operation, and the fruit of our volunteers’ efforts has been amazing to watch. After months of hard work, steadfast prayer, and in partnership with like-minded groups, I am overjoyed we succeeded in winning for families across our state. The progressive trifecta is broken, as is their longstanding six-year majority in the State House (resulting in a 67 to 67 tie). In fact, this election was so competitive that two recounts were issued (their results did not alter Minnesota’s legislative balance), so a multi-seat, pro-family majority is not out of the picture next time around. Indeed, several key races are still pending as I write in mid-December.

Even without a majority, a tie is wonderful news for our state because further attempts at promoting abortion, invading women’s bathrooms and sports teams (i.e., the Equal Rights Amendment), and eroding religious freedom will not come to fruition. For the next two years, unless a competitive special election arises, St. Paul must give an ear to Minnesotans who have not been listened to and steer back from its extreme progressive turn. This victory is truly a gift of grace over our state—praise God!

The Plan

So what part did Minnesota Family Council have to play? Collectively, we reached out to voters across 17 swing House districts plus the special State Senate election in District 45 (around Lake Minnetonka), and advocated for candidates who would defend life, family, and religious freedom through a multi-prong approach: digital ads (which garnered 4.01 million impressions), a phone banking operation (which made over 37,000 calls), a billboard campaign (spanning 10 districts), and the largest volunteer grassroots initiative our organization has ever undertaken. 

When I set out to recruit members for our grassroots team in August, I was hesitant to believe a group of unpaid volunteers could move the needle in these districts we set out to defend or flip. After all, I had never built or led anything remotely like this, and a fair number of our members had little to no campaigning experience. Thankfully, the support of multiple seasoned campaign professionals and a partner organization helped me get organized and launch our efforts. But by September, I still had only a modest list of interested people, and the election was just two months away.

A Uniquely Driven Team

God soon shattered my expectations by blessing us with an extraordinary team and showed me what can be done when His Church shows up. Our faith-driven volunteers made a combined 9,000 voter outreach attempts door-knocking, 1,500 dropping literature, and over 5,700 calling. That’s—at a minimum—an estimated 33 days straight of combined grassroots activism over 60 days, having only started the weekend after Labor Day.

In total, while only 35 volunteers deployed, with the majority giving a few spare hours when they could, they gave it their all. This small but dedicated group which God blessed us with was composed of passionate, hardworking, and loving individuals from all walks of life, including current and post-college students, retirees, and working parents. The top two volunteers were responsible for almost 3,000 door-knocking attempts, and another three made nearly 4,000 attempted calls. Even those who could not join us in the field were invaluable as we were flooded with their support and prayers.

What differentiated this group from others I’ve been a part of was that, unlike a campaign or party, they were motivated by something deeper than a political win or ideology—they were giving up their time to advocate not only for the good of their family but of people they had never met. Unlike the world, which sees politics as a quest for fame or power, I cherished that our team members were here to serve and recognized our hope was in Christ, not in someone we put into office.

The impact of this heart posture was incredible to witness. Volunteers were willing to drive great distances so their efforts could have the most impact. Another, who joined because he valued our mission to win for families, had the innovative idea of using his bike along canvassing routes. Many others persevered—regardless of poor weather, fatigue, technology issues, or schedule conflicts—to reach people with a family-first message.

Conversations our team had with voters were also on a different level. Each member showed utmost respect to folks at the door, regardless of the response they received. Even when doors were slammed or verbal arrows were shot at our team, they remained positive, composed, and confident that they were advocating for God-honoring positions that would allow Minnesota’s families to thrive. And, because the team genuinely cared for the people they came across, some voters opened up to us in our conversations, exchanging personal testimonies about abortion and other family issues. The whole experience was deeply meaningful for me and others on the team. God truly blessed us with incredible people.

The Election Results

Looking at the results of Minnesota Family Council’s election efforts, it is evident God’s hand was at work. Of the 18 races we engaged in, in partnership with other like-minded groups we defended all eight districts we set out to hold and helped flip two seats (18A near St. Peter and 26A in Winona), and the margin of victory expanded in nine of the ten districts we won. Our grassroots team assisted a five-point swing our way and a margin of victory of over eight points in defense of House District 36A (Rep. Elliott Engen, White Bear), and all 36A precincts we door-knocked performed better than 2022.

Our volunteers also played an aggressive offense in four progressive districts, producing seismic shakeups of progressive strongholds in partnership with our allies. Four precincts we canvassed flipped our way, and we lost those House races by only thin margins: 1.73% in district 32B (Blaine), 3.82% in 35A (Anoka, Coon Rapids), and 0.88% in 48B (Chanhassen, Chaska). In the special SD45 race, Kathleen Fowke went from losing by a 12.6-point deficit in 2022 to only 4.97 points in 2024—that’s over a 7-point shift.

A Turning Point In Minnesota

Having witnessed this election cycle up close, I realize that the results present a large problem for progressives: Minnesota’s political and cultural landscape is shifting. Shockingly, despite being on the top of the ballot as Harris’s Vice Presidential pick and together winning Minnesota by four percent, our governor did not help his allies maintain power back home. Stories shared by members of our grassroots team revealed a growing sense that St. Paul’s progressive policies no longer resonated with certain groups of voters. The flips of seats in St. Peter and Winona give credence to this phenomenon, and most notably, so does the flip of a third Minnesota House seat: House District 7B, a century-long progressive stronghold in the Iron Range home to many blue-collar workers who demonstrated they feel Twin Cities progressives have left them behind. Conservative House incumbents also widened their margins in Minnesota’s Arrowhead, races won by only a handful of votes in 2022. I met a handful of people who up until recently considered themselves somewhat liberal but felt as if progressives had gone off the deep end with gender ideology and equity lessons in the classroom.

Where does this leave us? Well, Minnesota’s shifting winds present us with an even greater opportunity going forward. Our 2024 grassroots team was only a taste of the change Christians can make when shining a light on family issues for their faith and community, and people across our state are beginning to see how hollow a progressive worldview is. I want to see the Church continue pulling this thread. Think of the impact we can make if more believers in Christ took a risk and trusted God by entering the public arena to stand for families, children, and the vulnerable across our state. Imagine the churches of Minnesota at the forefront of political engagement, using it as another lane to serve the least of these. Most of all, look at how a Christian approach to politics—one that does not place its hope in government and treats every person with dignity—could fundamentally influence our state’s divisive political and social landscape by pointing to Christ. God has rewarded our faithfulness in the 2024 election. Now we must be willing to do what he calls us to next, for the good of the North Star State.

The Hard-Earned Lesson of the Summer: Go Woke, Go Broke

It’s always been true—pride comes before the fall. This summer, companies proved it like never before. The people spoke, voted with their dollars, and chose family values over corporate America’s virtue signaling. We witnessed companies that went “woke”—from Target to Anheuser-Busch—instantly regretting the backlash they caused and taking backward steps. People are tired of the nonsense, especially when marketing departments promote things like gender ideology that actively targets our children. Let’s review the corporate wokeness we’ve seen in recent months, and what happened next. 

Let’s start local: Minnesota’s own Target Corp. You’ll recall that controversy erupted when Target stores set up LGBTQ displays in late May to prepare for the celebration of “pride” in June. They featured a variety of pride merchandise, such as a kid’s swimsuit labeled as “thoughtfully fit on multiple body types and gender expressions,” “tuck-friendly” swimsuits for men identifying as women, and children’s books titled “The Pronouns Book” and “Bye Bye Binary” among others lining shelves. Last but not least, Target partnered with a “queer” satanic clothing designer, Abprallen, who previously sold “Satan respects pronouns” t-shirts and “Trans Witches For Abortion” badges. The pride merchandise sparked a large flurry of anger from concerned parents and shoppers, leading to mass boycotts across the nation. 

The pressure from its once-regular customers led Target to have an emergency meeting, and some locations removed certain pride products and moved displays to the back of the store. This was just the beginning as Target failed to hit its revenue goal in the second quarter, which ended July 29, for the first time in six years. Compared to the same quarter last year, sales sank 5.4%. As a result, Target lowered its sales and profit forecast for the rest of the year. In addition, online sales had decreased 10.5%, and the average number of dollars spent per transaction fell. Total revenue decreased by 4.9% compared to last year, falling to $24.8 billion. 

On August 16th during an earnings call, Target admitted its mistake. Target’s CFO, Michael Fiddelke, credited backlash to the pride collection as a significant contribution to Target’s negative “traffic and top line trends.” CEO Brian Cornell concurred, acknowledging that the pride campaign led to a “negative guest reaction.” He also mentioned other factors that may have contributed to Target’s unsatisfactory financial performance, including inflation and theft. Walmart on the other hand, saw sales increase 6.4% and beat expectations substantially in their second quarter, leading them to increase their anticipated profit forecast for the year. 

As of this writing, the price of Target’s stock has fallen 20% since the start of the controversy, resulting in almost a $15 billion dollar decline in market value for the Minneapolis-based company, and has shown little signs of recovery. This led JP Morgan to downgrade Target for its stock’s “longest losing streak” in 23 years. The devastating loss also led American First Legal to sue Target on behalf of investor Brain Craig earlier in August, who holds 200 shares, arguing that Target misled shareholders and did not fulfill its obligations to them, instead occupying itself with advancing leftist agendas. Last week, Target’s chief growth officer, Christina Hennington indicated that Target may have learned its lesson in all of this, stating, “The reaction is a signal for us to pause, adapt and learn,” and Target plans to change things for next June. 

Target, however, was not alone in its pride “festivities” as Kohl’s put out pride displays in their locations as well, receiving similar backlash from customers. They too featured LGBTQ onesies among other pride-themed merchandise. One user even tweeted, “Another Company needing Bud-lighting.” This brings us to the most famous brand that went “broke” by going “woke” over the summer—Bud Light—and the numbers show it all. 

It all started when Anheuser-Busch, makers of America’s formerly most popular beer, Bud Light, thought it was a good idea to market its brand by partnering with Dylan Mulvaney—a man identifying as a woman—to celebrate his “365 days of girlhood.” Mulvaney posted a video April 1st of him promoting Bud Light while holding a special beer can sent to him by the company with his face printed on it. This was not intended as an April Fool’s joke. This caused Bud Light customers to question why the company would insert sexuality into its products, leading many to boycott the brand. 

Like Target, Anheuser-Busch saw its stock plummet immediately following the negative response to the Mulvaney partnership. Within six weeks of Mulvaney’s viral post, the stock price fell nearly 25% compared to the same time in 2022, and by mid-June, Anheuser-Busch’s market value remained at that level, a $35 billion decrease from $134.5 billion to $99 billion. Over the same time frame, Bud Light’s competitors saw a boost. Miller Lite sales increased by 21.4%, and Coors Light saw a 25.8% increase. Bud Light was also booted from the pedestal as America’s No. 1 selling beer, with Modelo Especial taking the cake as the most-sold beer by early June. 

After the Fourth of July, Bud Light’s popularity continued to drop, achieving the dismal title of 14th most popular beer. Bud Light practically paid customers over the July 4th weekend to drink their brand, offering $15 dollar rebates to customers who bought a 15-pack of Bud Light or Budweiser. Some 15-packs of Bud Light were being sold for less than $15, so the company basically gave out free beer, presumably to lessen the blow of its declining sales. 

At the beginning of August, we saw the damage that promoting the LGBTQ agenda did to Anheuser-Busch’s earnings in its second-quarter report. In the months of April through June, its U.S. sales dropped by nearly 11% with total profit falling by nearly 30%, and the brand experienced a 34% decline in drink orders. On the flip side, sales for Molson Coors (the parent company of Miller Lite and Coors Lite) were 50% greater than Bud Light’s during the same quarter. Gavin Hattersley, CEO of Molson Coors, stated, “Coors Light and Miller Lite are now 50% bigger than Bud Light by total industry dollars… Last year, Bud Light was bigger than both. Retailers are making space for our brands as demand increases.” Worst of all, the boycotts of the once-iconic brand resulted in the company laying off hundreds of workers. 

Now, according to a new survey from Deutsche Bank comparing results from August and July, “The proportion of former Bud Light drinkers who say they are very unlikely to buy the brand in 3-6 months time has reduced from 18% to just 3%.” However, they also found that 19% of beer drinkers, down from 21% in July, still said they would still not buy Bud Light. Evidence of Anheuser-Busch’s continuous unpopularity was discovered at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally earlier this month, where the Budweiser booth was seen completely deserted. Although the demands for boycotts appear to be cooling off this August, and some die-hard customers may be returning to the beer, the brand’s negativity has likely left a permanent stain on the minds of consumers, which may take years to recover from. 

And then we come to Disney. It’s no secret that Disney has been actively promoting progressive cultural values over the last decade and alienating Christians and conservatives from its fanbase. On Disney+ for instance, back in February of this year, The Proud Family cartoon featured an episode of kids demanding reparations for slavery through a musical number, and in 2022, an obtained video recording of the show’s executive producer, Latoya Raveneau, exposed her explicitly stating she’s pushing a “not-at-all-secret gay agenda” with the show, saying she sprinkles in “queerness” wherever she can. 

This summer, Disney bore the fruit of pushing away customers. Disney’s Pixar released Elemental, an animated kid’s movie that includes a non-binary character, which flopped at its opening, raking in only $29.5 million. To put that in perspective, this was the second-worst opening in Pixar history. Other movies fumbled, including the remake of The Little Mermaid, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and the remake of The Haunted Mansion. 

Then Disney’s third-quarter report came out. According to Forbes, “Disney+ subscriptions fell from 157.8 million worldwide to 146.1 million, a loss of 11.7 million — more than doubling last quarter’s record decline, and it included a decrease of 300,000 in the U.S. and Canada where subscribers fell to 46 million. It’s just the second time Disney+ has taken a hit in North America; last quarter was the first.” Most of the decline in subscribers came from Disney+ Hotstar in India, where it lost 24% of subscribers largely due to Disney losing rights to a popular cricket league. However, India is still very much a traditional country, and it’s hard to believe Disney’s woke trend hasn’t gone unnoticed internationally, so it’s plausible some in India are also becoming weary of Disney’s progressive direction. 

As of late, some are predicting a “Bud Light” scenario for Disney’s Snow White remake. The actress for Snow White, Rachel Zegler, made headlines over her recent comments about the original film, calling it “weird” and the film’s prince a “stalker.” There are concerns her negativity towards the classic film will tank the remake’s success at the box office, not to mention the fact that she revealed massive changes to the plot, most prominently that Snow White is “not going to be saved by the prince and she’s not going to be dreaming about true love.” Some are predicting that this situation, along with Disney’s new partnership to promote girls’ clothing with a gender-fluid influencer, may continue to hurt the company’s bottom line. 

But it’s not just Target, Bud Light, and Disney. Countless other companies this summer have proven “wokeness” is not good for business, contrary to Mark Cuban’s take. Thousands of people protested outside Dodger’s stadium for hosting the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a drag queen group that mocks the Catholic faith. Skittles sparked online backlash over its “Black trans lives matter” packaging along with more boycott calls. And there are many, many more examples. 

We often don’t realize what we have until it’s taken away. Concerned parents, Christians, and Americans are waking up to the fact that once-beloved brands have become hostile to their values. But it doesn’t matter how big a corporation is. Ordinary God-fearing and family-loving people are choosing to stand for their values in large, unprecedented ways and measurably impacting corporations’ bottom lines. That’s what this summer has shown us.  

I appreciate the words of Matt Fradd, who summed up what I believe many consumers were thinking as they engaged in boycotts this summer: “Our primary purpose in doing this is not to make [companies] hurt financially, but to not participate in evil.” It’s not about deepening the division in America or seeking revenge, as some may see it. It’s about concerned consumers uniting around Christian and family values that corporations have deemed “unprofitable” or “unimportant”—and actively doing something about their convictions by aligning their wallets with their hearts to choose alternatives. 

The lesson companies should learn from the summer of 2023 is greater than “go woke, go broke.” The lesson is this: the myth that traditional values no longer play a large role in American life is busted. Moreover, shoppers, parents, Christians, conservatives, and everyday Americans are not simply standing against something, but they’re now striving toward something: a brighter future for our families established on the bedrock of the truths and values emanating ultimately from the gospel, which brings blessings to everyone. Anyone who tells you otherwise has been drinking too much Bud Light. 

What is a Family?

You’ve likely heard about or watched Matt Walsh’s film What is a Woman? In light of the dramatic shift in the cultural wind on sexuality, gender norms, and men breaking records in women’s sports, it is an important question to ask. Yet there’s another question that has come about amidst our cultural chaos that is less talked about: What is a family? This question was the topic of interest in a recent conversation I had with a friend from church—who also happens to be a state representative—Rep. Walter Hudson (R-Albertville).

From our conversation, it is clear that nothing is more important in Rep. Hudson’s life than faith and family. He recently celebrated his 18th wedding anniversary, which he highlighted on Facebook: “My wife Carrie and I have had a rocky journey. But we've kept it together, and the reward for such endurance is an irreplaceable legacy of living memory and solidarity. Nothing can replace that. Nothing.”

Given his passion for family and unique position, I thought it would be valuable to sit down with him and get his perspective on the impact our progressive state and culture are having on our families.

The overarching theme of our conversation was his diagnosis that progressives are seeking to redefine what family means. Just like with gender and other formerly well-understood words in the English vocabulary, there is an ongoing effort to change how you view and think about family and the implications associated with it by removing its divine origins—that God established it as the original institution of humanity. In Rep. Hudson’s words, the term “family,” meaning a married father and mother engaged in rearing children, has now been appropriated to “describe the community of Sodom.”

It's a bold statement, but I encourage you to think about it. What have we witnessed over the last few years? He pointed out that often LGBTQ events will be labeled as “family-friendly”—from drag shows to pride parades to transgender meet and greets—but they are anything but. This past June, a pride event featuring a “pornographic drag performer” in Hopkins, Minnesota, was advertised as “family-friendly,” and later in July, a Chaska children’s boutique hosted a drag queen story hour marketed for young children. Similar events have happened throughout the last half decade in Minnesota and the nation, and the frequency of these events is only increasing.

In fact, the whole progressive agenda in Minnesota has been labeled a “family” movement by Governor Tim Walz. In January, Walz outlined his One Minnesota Budget as a way to make Minnesota “the best state for kids” and tweeted messages along the same vein in May and June. Most recently in July, his wording shifted to include “family” in a tweet where he said, “We’re working to make Minnesota the best state to raise a family—no matter where you live. This is what good government can and should do.” This appears to be a worthy goal, but progressives’ redefinition of family and accompanying values—which includes any combination of parents, full affirmation of a child’s false identity, and childhood exposure to sexualized content—is completely different from Rep. Hudson’s, yours, and mine.

Yet this rebranding of the family is not entirely new. “We first saw it in the debate over gay marriage,” according to John Helmberger, Minnesota Family Council’s CEO: “LGBTQ activists countered our argument that kids need a mom and a dad with the lie that any combination of loving ‘parents’ is equally good. But they certainly are taking the redefinition to new heights now.”

The God-given roles of men and women and divinely established family unit were good (Genesis 1), but our secular culture believed they needed to be reinvented. Why? Mr. Helmberger put it this way:

When people exchange the truth of God for a lie, they are compelled to redefine institutions that God created, but without God, because they need what the institution was created to provide. Though they reject the truth, that’s still how God created them. So they create counterfeits that can never meet the need for which God created the institution they reject.

This trend in modern America has resulted in a divided culture that has progressives—those wanting to leave the truths of Scripture behind—attempting to upend our societal bedrock on one hand; on the other, those who had no intent of joining this revolution (and didn’t ask for it) are wondering how we got here. This confusion culminates in the need to ask basic questions our society has never had to ask before, like “What is a woman?” or “What is a family?” When you attempt to remove dross from pure gold— remake something that doesn’t need to be remade—the only thing you can ever end up removing is gold, and that is exactly what’s being done. When our culture rejects God, instead of pursuing the ideal of raising a family and upholding traditional family values, there is no alternative but to tear the whole thing down and establish a human-instituted community unit.

We’ve often heard about the “march through the institutions” and tend to think it’s far from over. But the family is the final institution—there are no more to take over. Once the norm of the traditional family has fallen, Minnesota and the rest of America will have lost the fundamental building block of human society. Nothing else will be able to stand.

Well, there is one final institution that the Left can never conquer. That is Christ’s bride, the Church. The Church is a family, ruled by a divine Father. We have all been brought into that family through repentance, faith, and Baptism. Certainly, some churches have been conquered and colonized by the doctrines of men. But the invisible Church instituted by Christ can never bow the knee to worldly powers.

The left has already made huge leaps towards conquering the family, including the collapse of responsible and virtuous parenting. We often complain about drag queens at grotesque events, but what about the parents? How can they possibly think bringing children to sexualized events is appropriate? As Bill Walsh states in his recent article,

… in [parents’] quest for tolerance, they’ve lost track of something equally important to teach young people: the truth.”

The fact this is happening shows how far the family unit has eroded and how many people have exchanged the truth about gender, marriage, and family for lies. And, because we have become so desensitized to the rainbow tsunami washing over America, we haven’t realized how much of a crisis this is. Thankfully, my discussion with Rep. Hudson was not all doom and gloom. We both concluded that there is hope for Minnesota’s families, and Rep. Hudson laid out two different approaches to this. One way, and the most lasting way, would be to see revival of faith in our state. This is the long-term goal and the most effective because it tackles the core issue: the condition of man’s heart. This requires everyone, no matter where God has called us, to continue testifying before our friends, family, and coworkers about the truth of the gospel. And this is ultimately our core earthly purpose as Christians—to spread the Word to the world.

The second path requires a change in strategy. Christian conservatives, myself included, are often great at complaining and highlighting the harm of progressive policiess, but if that’s all we do, we fail to create a movement people want to join, even if we win politically. This is why we need to refocus our efforts on offering a positive alternative for Minnesota. Without getting into the weeds, we need to explain the nuances of the left’s terminology—how it’s deceptive, doesn’t mean what people think it does, and how progressive values eventually lead people down the road of self-destruction—but we cannot stop there. We must show our neighbors that God’s way is better, and how pursuing His values and vision for our lives will allow society to truly thrive. Showing why we value what we do—the truth and emotion behind it—will be far more effective than simply pointing out the vices of leftism.

Like men winning women’s competitions, progressive family “values” are counterfeits—they’re not the real deal, and any hope that they can be will eventually come crashing down. Redefining a wrong will never make it right, and God’s design for family leads to a happier and more fulfilling life because He created the family, and His rules are “house rules.” Family is not just a label that can be applied to a policy or lifestyle to make it more “Minnesota nice” or acceptable. So the true answer to “What is a family?” must begin and end with God’s Word – which speaks clearly and offers hope to everyone it touches.

Editor’s note: this article was written by Minnesota Family Council’s 40th Anniversary intern.