Former WCCO Radio host Cory Hepola joins governor's race as third-party candidate

Former WCCO Radio host Cory Hepola is joining the race for Minnesota governor as a third-party candidate.

Hepola, who also worked as an anchor for KARE 11, is running as a member of the Forward Party recently founded by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang.

"We hear you, Minnesota. You're tired, you're frustrated, you're exhausted with this broken, toxic two-party system that is pushing forward negative, hateful — not only speech — but inactivity," Hepola said at his campaign launch Wednesday at the State Capitol. "There's no collaboration. There's not compromise. We deserve better."

Hepola is the first third-party candidate to enter the governor's race and could sway the outcome in November. A long list of Republican candidates already joined the race to try and unseat DFL Gov. Tim Walz.

The former broadcaster declared himself a "purple" candidate and said he will focus on improving education, public health and economic opportunities.

State DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin called Hepola a "spoiler" and said he could hand the governor's office to a Republican, noting that several recent gubernatorial elections in the state were decided by a narrow margin.

"A vote for Cory Hepola is a vote to help the GOP cut taxes for the rich, defund public schools, and force their anti-choice agenda on Minnesotans," Martin said in a statement.

Hepola called the DFL's stance dismissive, and he will be working to earn votes.

He declined to get into details about his policy agenda, but said he wants to look at universal pre-K and child care and noted that the lack of providers is keeping people from returning to work. He also said he wants to address the opioid crisis and improve access to mental health services.

Hepola said he voted for Democratic President Joe Biden and for Walz, and thinks the DFL governor is "a great person." He said Walz did an excellent job communicating about COVID-19 during the first few months of the crisis, but said after that the pandemic became politicized. He said the governor abused his emergency powers and held on to them for too long.

He called the state's projected $9.3 billion budget surplus "embarrassing." The state needs tax reform and is not attracting young people because of its high taxes, he said. Hepola also said Minnesota has not been supportive of small-business owners.

The Forward Party of Minnesota was formed this year and is the movement's first state party in the nation, said John Denney, the Forward Party's state lead. He noted Yang is looking to Minnesota as a "building block" of the campaign. Officials with the party said they also aim to have candidates run for a variety of other offices, including Hennepin County sheriff and attorney.