Republican activists are gathering across Minnesota on Saturday to throw their backing behind candidates to compete in congressional races from western Minnesota to the Twin Cities suburbs.

Four Republicans are seeking the party’s endorsement in the suburban Third District, which is open after DFL U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips announced he wouldn’t seek re-election. In Minnesota’s competitive Second District, which covers suburbs and rural areas south of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Republicans Tayler Rahm and Joe Teirab are both vying for the backing of activists to take on incumbent U.S. Rep. Angie Craig.

Rahm, a conservative attorney from Burnsville who has never run for office before, is positioning himself as the outsider candidate with backing from grassroots activists. He’s up against former prosecutor Joe Teirab, who has said he plans to move on to the August primary election regardless of the results of Saturday’s endorsing convention.

Teirab has dramatically outraised Rahm so far this cycle. He recently reported ending March with $662,000 in the bank, while Rahm has $59,500 in cash.

The outcome of the race is critical for Republicans, who are fighting this fall to maintain their narrow control of the U.S. House. The Second District, represented since 2018 by Craig, is one of a few remaining swing districts in the country that offer them a chance for a pick up. Some Republicans are worried a potential primary battle will give them a disadvantage in the race, while others have criticized the endorsing process for choosing candidates who don’t have broad appeal.

In western Minnesota, incumbent U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach and challenger Steve Boyd are vying for the Republican endorsement. Both candidates have signaled they plan to continue running through the August primary election, regardless of who wins the party’s endorsement at Saturday’s convention.

“Despite having every opportunity to respect our party’s process, our traditions, and the opinions of grassroots delegates, Steve Boyd is defying the endorsement and forcing a primary election,” Norann Dillon, executive director of Fischbach’s congressional campaign, wrote in a recent email.

The 38-year-old Boyd is a political outsider, a small business owner from Kensington who’s never held public office. He said the Seventh Congressional District would be better served by a new voice, arguing Fischbach, a former state senator for more than two decades, is a political insider.

“My goal would be to do politics a different way and run in a manner that engages more people in the process. Don’t just work the numbers so we win. Stand on principle,” Boyd recently told the Star Tribune. He added that he would be willing to shut down the government to fix the border crisis.

Fischbach has one of the most conservative voting records in Congress and has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump. Yet, many Trump-aligned conservative activists in the district are backing Boyd over Fischbach.

The Seventh District’s endorsing convention is expected to be contentious. Some conservative activists from Otter Tail County who are trying to become delegates could disrupt the convention. Most of those activists support Boyd and could make the endorsing race more competitive if they’re seated as delegates.

After a busy first night of the 2024 NFL Draft saw the Vikings land J.J. McCarthy and Dallas Turner, Day 2 came and went without Minnesota making any picks. Their second-rounder was traded in March in a deal for the 23rd pick, and their third-rounder was moved a couple years ago in the T.J. Hockenson deal.

GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings will be back in action for Day 3 on Saturday, with five picks at their disposal and plenty of needs to address. As is always the case, there’s still plenty of talent available after the first three rounds. Here’s a quick preview of an important day for the Vikings, which begins at 11 a.m. CT.

Vikings 2024 draft picks

* Round 1, Pick 10: J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
* Round 1, Pick 17: Dallas Turner, OLB, Alabama
* Round 4, Pick 108
* Round 6, Pick 177
* Round 6, Pick 203
* Round 7, Pick 230
* Round 7, Pick 232

Day 3 needs

Defensive tackle: Minnesota has one of the five worst DT rooms in the NFL. Harrison Phillips is a solid nose tackle, but Jonathan Bullard is a replacement-level player who starts for the Vikings and the pressure-creating options are Jerry Tillery and Jaquelin Roy. This is a glaring need.

Cornerback: The Vikings’ starting corners are in place with Byron Murphy Jr., Shaq Griffin, and Mekhi Blackmon, but they could really use another young piece at that position with a chance to develop into a contributor. 2022 draft picks Andrew Booth Jr. and Akayleb Evans have not panned out.

Left guard: Dalton Risner remains a free agent, so the Vikings’ current projected starter at LG is Blake Brandel, who has been a backup throughout his career. They need competition at that spot.

Wide receiver: You can never have too many wide receivers. The Vikings let K.J. Osborn walk in free agency, so it would be helpful if they could grab someone who can enter the depth mix with Brandon Powell, Trent Sherfield, and Jalen Nailor.

Kicker: The Vikings need to add a kicker to compete with John Parker Romo, who they signed from the XFL. That could be an option in the seventh round or undrafted free agency.

Others: On defense, linebacker and safety are both options where the Vikings could add someone with versatility and special teams value. They could also take another edge rusher. On offense, don’t rule out tight end or running back. Basically the only position that would be surprising is quarterback.

Potential targets with pick 108

If the Vikings don’t trade down (which feels like a real possibility), they’ll have the eighth pick of the fourth round on Saturday morning, and then nothing until the first pick of the sixth round. These players are among those who would make sense at 108:

That’s obviously just a small portion of the players who could be under consideration for the Vikings in the fourth round. Keep an eye on Jackson and Baker, who took top-30 visits to Minnesota recently.

Late-round names to know

The following players visited the Vikings during the pre-draft process and could be options in the 6th or 7th round (or as UDFAs).

* LSU IOL Charles Turner III
* Oregon DT Taki Taimani
* Tennessee TE McCallan Castles
* UNC OT Spencer Rolland
* UNI DT Khristian Boyd
* Washington RB Dillon Johnson
* Iowa TE Erick All
* USF OT Donovan Jennings
* CFL CB Qwan’tez Stiggers
* Ohio State S Josh Proctor
* Memphis RB Blake Watson
* UTSA WR Joshua Cephus
* TCU S Millard Bradford

Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all offseason long.

Follow Will Ragatz on X/Twitter

Phoenix Suns guard Grayson Allen will not play in Game 3 of the Western Conference first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Suns head coach Frank Vogel said pregame that he would be a GameTime decision. That decision had been made. Allen did not participate in pregame shoot around.

Grayson Allen is the NBA’s top 3-point shooter but sustained a right ankle injury he re-aggravated early in the third quarter in Game 2 on Tuesday.

More to come on this story.