From the NFL sidelines to a US Senate race: Michele Tafoya’s new play

By Canadian Press on January 21, 2026.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya launched her campaign for the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, hoping to win the Republican nomination for the Minnesota seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Sen. Tina Smith.

“For years, I covered the biggest football games in America,” Tafoya said in a video posted on social media. “I walked the sidelines when the pressure was mounting and the stakes were the highest. That job taught me about more than football. It taught me about how leadership really works. When leaders are prepared and accountable, teams succeed. When they aren’t, people pay the price.”

Tafoya, who’s long been active in Minnesota Republican politics, is best known for her work from 2011-2022 as a sideline reporter for NBC’s Sunday Night Football. Other Republicans in the race include former NBA player Royce White, who lost to U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar in 2024, and military veterans Adam Schwarze and Tom Weiler.

On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan are competing for their party’s nomination to succeed Smith, who announced last February that she wouldn’t seek another term.

Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press