Double Murderer Running For U.S. Senate In Minnesota

STILLWATER, MN — A Minnesota man sentenced to life in prison for two murders is running for the United States Senate in Minnesota. Leonard Joseph Richards, 75, used a loophole in the Land of 10,000 Lakes to get his name on the ballot ahead of the November midterms.

While felons are banned from running for state-level positions, there's nothing on the books that prevents them from running for a federal office in Minnesota.

Richards — who has been incarcerated since 1991 — was convicted of murdering his half-sister, May Wilson, and his lawyer, Robert Stratton. He's officially running against Democratic incumbent Amy Klobuchar in the party's primary.

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Richards has run for federal office several times as an inmate, including in 1992 when he received more than 14,500 votes in a primary for the U.S. House.

The state's only major requirements to run for federal office is that you're old enough and you live in Minnesota. Richards is currently serving prison time in Stillwater's state correctional facility, just outside Saint Paul.

Stratton’s sister told the Minneapolis Star Tribune she recently contacted the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office, which said there was nothing they could do to keep him off the ballot.

"I know he won’t win against Amy Klobuchar, but even one vote for this murderer is too many," she told the newspaper.

Images via Minnesota Department of Corrections