Paul Wikstrom

Paul Wikstrom (Republican Party) is running for election to the U.S. House to represent Minnesota's 4th Congressional District. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 3, 2026. He advanced from the Republican primary on August 11, 2026.

Wikstrom completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Paul Wikstrom earned a high school diploma from Dickinson High School. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, and a graduate degree from the University of St. Thomas. His career experience includes working as an engineering manager.^[1]

Elections

2026

Minnesota's 4th Congressional District election, 2026 (August 11 Democratic primary)

Minnesota's 4th Congressional District election, 2026 (August 11 Republican primary)

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Incumbent Betty McCollum (D) and Paul Wikstrom (R) are running in the general election for U.S. House Minnesota District 4 on November 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Betty McCollum (D)
		Paul Wikstrom (R)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Incumbent Betty McCollum (D) defeated Aswar Rahman (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4 on August 11, 2026.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Betty McCollum	85.7	93,798
	Aswar Rahman	14.3	15,622

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. Vote totals may change until results are certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 109,420
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Paul Wikstrom (R) defeated Paul Xiong (R) and Gene Rechtzigel (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4 on August 11, 2026.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Paul Wikstrom	72.6	20,380
	Submit photo	Paul Xiong	16.9	4,734
		Gene Rechtzigel	10.5	2,955

	There were no incumbents in this race. Vote totals may change until results are certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 28,069
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

See also: Our approach to covering endorsements

Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements and voter guide recommendations. To send us an endorsement, click here.

2025

Minnesota State House 40B

General election

Special general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B

David Gottfried defeated Paul Wikstrom in the special general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B on March 11, 2025.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	David Gottfried (D)	70.2	9,352
	Paul Wikstrom (R)	29.8	3,966
	Other/Write-in votes	0.1	13

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 13,331
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. David Gottfried advanced from the special Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Paul Wikstrom advanced from the special Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B.

Minnesota State House 40B (canceled)

Paul Wikstrom was scheduled to be on the ballot in the January 28, 2025, special election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B, but the race was canceled by an order from the Minnesota Supreme Court on January 18, 2025.^[2]

2024

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B

Curtis Johnson defeated Paul Wikstrom in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Curtis Johnson (D)	65.2	15,963
		Paul Wikstrom (R)	34.6	8,460
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	63

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 24,486
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Curtis Johnson advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Paul Wikstrom advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B.

Campaign finance

Endorsements

See also: Our approach to covering endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements or voter guide recommendations for Wikstrom in this election.

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

Paul Wikstrom completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Wikstrom's responses.

Expand All

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in Montana and North Dakota before moving to Minnesota as a young adult. I held jobs in seismic exploration, road construction and farming before becoming an engineer. I learned the value of a hard day's work and the heavy toll of a long shift. I understand that the true heart of our country isn’t found in corporate boardrooms—it’s found on the shop floors, and on the job sites where hard-working Americans clock in every single day. My experiences have shaped my priorities as a candidate: protecting jobs, cutting the red tape that stifles our local industries, and making sure that hard working Americans keep more of their hard-earned paychecks.

My wife and I have been married for 30 years and raised three children in Shoreview. I am in this race because I care about the future of our country and what it will provide to my children and their children. Beyond my professional career as an engineering manager, I have dedicated myself to community service:

-Certified flight instructor and active pilot -Medical volunteer missions — flying to serve those in need -Youth soccer coach for over 10 years -Assisting neighbors

-Republican grassroots efforts and leader for 25+ years; convening caucuses, chairing conventions, and supporting campaigns

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

STOP THE FRAUD- I will fight to stop the fraud by restoring integrity to the government, so that your hard earned tax dollars are not stolen and diverted from the programs that help the vulnerable in Minnesota.
-My plan will require mandatory audits for all major federal spending. -I will also propose that there will be no appropriation of program funds without controls, requiring fraud-prevention measures as a condition of funding.
-I will demand accountability. Fraud will not stop until perpetrators in both the public and private sector are held accountable.
AFFORDABILITY- I will work to protect and put more money in your pocket. -Protect and Expand Tax Cuts – eliminate tax on tips, no tax on overtime, expand child tax credits and eliminate the death tax to protect farms and small businesses. -Unleash American Production – increase American energy, food and housing supply by reducing regulation and improving investment climate. -Bring Back Competition in Healthcare – increase price transparency, allow purchase of insurance across state lines, stop drug companies from blocking access to generics and imported drugs.
JOBS AND BUSINESS- Build an economy that works for families. -Contain our deficit spending and get our national debt under control -Invest in America and Minnesota starting with domestic manufacturing and energy independence. -Fix the Education System – prepare our children to succeed by focusing on academics, not political agendas, and expanding vocational training opportunities. -Cut Red Tape - require Congressional approval for major regulations and follow One-in/two-out rule for new regulations.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I enjoy spending my free time serving my community and lifting up those who need a helping hand. I have a proven track record fighting election fraud. I contested a fraudulent candidate in 2024 which resulted in a Republican House speaker, a fraud committee, and restored political balance to the Minnesota House. These changes STOPPED THE RUNAWAY DFL TRIFECTA and resulted in SAVING BILLIONS OF DOLLARS for Minnesotans! I plan to continue my fight for US Citizens and Minnesotans in the US Congress!

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

Paul Wikstrom did not complete Ballotpedia's 2025 Candidate Connection survey.

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

Paul Wikstrom did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Paul Wikstrom campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2026*	U.S. House Minnesota District 4	On the Ballot general	$62,611	$33,664
2024	Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B	Lost general	$25,472	$23,885
Grand total			$88,083	$57,549
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Election Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

External links

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Candidate

U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 27, 2026
↑ KARE 11, "'Issued prematurely': House District 40B special election set for Jan. 28 canceled, Minnesota Supreme Court rules," January 17, 2025

[show]

Minnesota's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Amy Klobuchar (D)

Tina Smith (D)

Representatives

District 1

Brad Finstad (R)

District 2

Angie Craig (D)

District 3

Kelly Morrison (D)

District 4

Betty McCollum (D)

District 5

Ilhan Omar (D)

District 6

Tom Emmer (R)

District 7

Michelle Fischbach (R)

District 8

Pete Stauber (R)

Democratic Party (6)

Republican Party (4)

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 27, 2026

[2] KARE 11, "'Issued prematurely': House District 40B special election set for Jan. 28 canceled, Minnesota Supreme Court rules," January 17, 2025

[1]

[2]

Paul Wikstrom

Biography

Elections

2026

General election

General election for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Minnesota District 4

Endorsements

2025

Minnesota State House 40B

General election

Special general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B

Democratic primary election

Republican primary election

Minnesota State House 40B (canceled)

2024

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B

Democratic primary election

Republican primary election

Campaign finance

Endorsements

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

Campaign finance summary

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2026 Elections

2027 Elections

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