Tim Walz May Drop His Reelection Bid as Soon as Today While Minnesota Fraud Scandal Deepens: Report

AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is expected to abandon his bid for a third term as a widening fraud investigation tied to the state’s welfare and child care programs brings him under intense scrutiny.

Walz’s office issued a late-night advisory promising he would “discuss news of the day” at an impromptu 11 a.m. press conference, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Veteran Minnesota political analyst Blois Olson, citing sources, reported that Walz was “likely to drop out of the 2026 #mngov race.”

Olsen added that the governor reportedly met with Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) on Sunday night.

Two senior Democrats later told CNN chief national affairs correspondent Jeff Zeleny that Walz’s decision on whether or not to run for a third term was, indeed, the subject of the upcoming presser.

The governor has been under the microscope since allegations that billions of dollars in federally backed aid programs were siphoned off through organized fraud networks, cases that prosecutors say stretch back years.

The controversy was renewed last month after independent journalist Nick Shirley published viral footage of taxpayer-funded day care centers that appeared largely empty while receiving substantial public funds. Federal authorities have since announced a broad operation aimed at “identifying, arresting, and removing criminals who are defrauding the American people.”

Walz, in return, has argued that his administration has sought to tackle fraud, but Republicans have seized on the scandal. State representative Kristin Robbins, who chairs the Minnesota Fraud Committee and is running for governor, said warnings to Walz’s administration went unheeded.

“They can’t say they didn’t know. We had a hearing on it. We gave them a list, and nothing has happened,” she said.