Minnesota fraud crisis claims political casualty as Tim Walz abandons reelection bid

After reports of a growing number of Democratic elected officials pushing for Tim Walz to step aside, he finally folded and announced that he will no longer be seeking a third term as governor of Minnesota.

The former Democratic vice presidential nominee broke the news on X using a four-slide announcement that called the year 2025 “extraordinarily difficult.” The state had been at the center of an end-of-year viral video by Nick Shirley, in which he accused a group of child care facilities of fraud. The unverified report by the YouTuber-based content creator led to the freezing of funds by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Minnesota has to come first – always.

Today, I’m proud of the work we’ve done to make Minnesota the best place to live and raise kids.

I’ve decided to step out of the race and let others worry about the election while I focus on the work. pic.twitter.com/AYbvcOzyPI

— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) January 5, 2026

However, for outgoing Gov. Tim Walz, the issue is far more complex than Shirley and his MAGA-aligned followers understand it to be. Walz accused Trump of trying to use the fraud allegations to polarize his state and turn it into a “colder, meaner place.” Walz suggested that should he stay in the race, it would only act as a distraction from the surge of work required to defend Minnesota from individuals he has described as “criminals who prey on our generosity.”

There have been a series of fraud cases in Minnesota that have intensified not just calls from MAGA loyalists for Tim Walz to resign, but also for criminal charges to follow. The first allegations surrounded a mind-boggling $300 million that was allegedly misappropriated by the nonprofit Feeding Our Future.

According to Newsweek, more than half of the nearly $18 billion in federal funds that have supported 14 programs in Minnesota are feared to have been stolen. This was before the allegations involving the child care programs ever became a point of conflict. Fifty-seven people have so far been indicted and convicted for misappropriating relief funds provided by the state. Many of those convicted were Somali. Donald Trump has since responded by rebuking Somali immigrants, particularly Rep. Ilhan Omar.

According to Gov. Walz, Trump has gone further by tying all of Minnesota’s problems to its Somali immigrant population. Walz took to the social media platform X to write, “Dangerous, depraved behavior from the sitting president of the United States. In covering for an actual serial killer, he is going to get more innocent people killed.”

Trump has not responded directly to the Walz announcement, but in light of the Shirley “exposé,” he was asked about Walz aboard Air Force One and responded in his typical colorful fashion. Trump said, “It’s almost not even believable. This very stupid, low-IQ governor — he’s a very stupid man because, you know, I had to campaign against him with JD, and he’s a stupid man and he’s a corrupt politician and the Somalians are ripping off our country to the tune of looks like $19 billion, but that’s only what they can find.”

Other GOP lawmakers, however, have already begun responding to the announcement. Rep. Kristin Robbins was not satisfied with Walz saying he would not run for a third term and instead used the remainder of his time to ensure anyone accused of fraud has their day in court. Robbins took to X to call for Walz’s resignation.