President Donald Trump has endorsed MyPillow founder Mike Lindell for Minnesota governor, praising him as “one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots” and giving formal backing to a fellow election denier a day before the Republican president delivers a national address he says will focus on election security.
Lindell established his national profile from his TV advertising campaign as the MyPillow Guy and has been one of Trump’s most outspoken supporters, echoing the president’s false claims that his 2020 election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden was fraudulent.
“Mike will be SPECTACULAR!!! He truly loves Minnesota, as do I, and wants to bring it back from oblivion and embarrassment. He can do it!” Trump posted Wednesday on his Truth Social platform, referring to Lindell as “the ‘Pillow Man.’”
Trump has hammered outgoing Gov. Tim Walz, Democrats’ 2024 vice presidential nominee, as incompetent and accused his administration of allowing rampant fraud in federal spending on childcare. Trump has employed racist rhetoric to target Minnesota’s Somali immigrant population as driving the alleged fraud.
Walz, who ended his bid for a third term earlier this year, disputes the Trump administration’s characterizations. There are ongoing investigations into the state's administration of federally supported childcare programs in the state.
Lindell is part of a crowded Republican field competing in an Aug. 11 primary. The GOP list includes state House Speaker Lisa Demuth. Lindell has attacked Demuth as responsible for federal spending fraud. Demuth has blamed the Democratic administration and executive agency leaders that oversee federal grants to childcare providers.
Longtime U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar headlines the Democratic field for governor.
There are 36 gubernatorial elections this November. There currently are 26 Republican governors and 24 Democratic governors, and Republicans view Minnesota as an opportunity to flip a seat despite a challenging national environment because of Trump’s lagging popularity and voters’ discontent over the economy.
While Trump and Republicans focus on the childcare fraud accusations, Democrats, including Klobuchar, have focused on the Trump administration's immigration crackdown that involved federal officers killing two Minnesotans, the assassination of a state legislative leader and a school shooting that killed multiple children — all within the past year. Klobuchar has mostly avoided direct mention of the childcare programs and fraud inquiries that Trump has made a political cudgel.
As he's made endorsements in Republican primaries this year, Trump has remained fixated on his lies about the 2020 election. In Georgia, recently, he made a late endorsement in a hotly contested U.S. Senate primary for Rep. Mike Collins, noting the congressman's stalwart support and referencing passing comments made by his opponent, former football coach Derek Dooley, affirming that Biden was legitimately elected in 2020.
FILE - MyPillow founder Mike Lindell arrives before former President Donald Trump speaks at his Mar-a-Lago estate, April 4, 2023, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - Mike Lindell gives a thumbs up as he passes by a rally for supporters of former President Donald Trump, April 4, 2023, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen marked Ukraine’s annual Statehood Day on Wednesday in Kyiv, pledging continued military and financial support for the country's sovereignty as it holds out against Russia’s 4-year-old full-scale invasion.
Ukraine has been under threat since Russian forces illegally annexed the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, followed eight years later by the all-out invasion in 2022. Statehood Day, celebrating the country’s self-determination, is a public holiday in Ukraine.
The war has killed thousands of soldiers and civilians, forced millions to flee their homes, reduced some Ukrainian cities to rubble, and has fueled fears the confrontation could slide into an open conflict between Russia and NATO, whose member nations have supported Kyiv. No peace settlement is in sight.
Senior officials from southeastern European countries also were expected in Kyiv for a gathering focused on Black Sea and regional security. Last year’s meeting in the southern city of Odesa reaffirmed their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has recently won important pledges of further support, including from the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations and the so-called Coalition of the Willing countries.
Von der Leyen said her trip to the Ukrainian capital was her 11th in wartime. Europe is watchful of Russia’s broader intentions on the continent and has provided billions of euros (dollars) to Ukraine as well as diplomatic support.
Von der Leyen said she would announce new steps toward integrating the European and Ukrainian defense industries as well as providing help to prepare the country's air defenses for the colder months, when Russia usually tries to knock out electricity and heat in what Kyiv officials call “weaponizing winter.”
The top European Union official's visit came as Western officials and analysts say Ukraine’s drone and missile attacks are hitting high-profile targets deep inside Russia, severely disrupting Moscow's supply lines and causing civilian fuel shortages.
“It’s a special moment,” Von der Leyen said on social media. “Ukraine has built a strong military momentum. The tide is turning.”
Washington appeared poised to increase economic pressure on Moscow as a proposed Russia sanctions bill was unveiled in the U.S. Senate following Saturday’s death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of its chief backers.
The bill, which its authors had hoped to pass last summer but was held up by White House reservations, would impose steep tariffs on goods from countries that continue to buy Russian oil, gas and other exports.
Wednesday's official ceremonies and visiting dignitaries in Kyiv came at a delicate political moment for Zelenskyy as he manages a major government reshuffle.
Meanwhile, Serbia’s Moscow-friendly president, Aleksandar Vucic, was taking part in the Southeast Europe Summit in Kyiv. Serbia, which relies almost fully on Russia for its energy supplies, has refused to join Western sanctions on Moscow, although it officially supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
Ukrainian officials said Wednesday that at least nine civilians were killed and 13 others were injured in Russian aerial attacks.
Russian forces dropped six glide bombs mostly targeting infrastructure in the Sumy region of northern Ukraine, killing three people and wounding seven, said Oleh Hryhorov, head of the regional military administration.
Three people were killed and three others wounded in a Russian attack on Odesa, according to Serhii Lysak, the head of the city’s military administration.
In the Chernihiv region of northern Ukraine, Russian drones killed two people and seriously wounded an 18-year-old, while one person was killed and two injured in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, officials said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said its air defenses overnight intercepted 93 Ukrainian drones over several Russian regions, as well as over Crimea and the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Associated Press reporter Justin Spike in Budapest contributed.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Ukrainian and EU officials attend a ceremony in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, greets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)
From left, Romania President Nicusor Dan, Moldova President Maia Sandu, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Olena Zelenska attend a ceremony in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, awards European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Press Office, Ukraine's deputy of Foreign Minister Olexander Mischenko, left, welcomes European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen upon her arrival at a railway station in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Press Office via AP)
