Add The New York Post on Google Minnesota Senate candidate Michele Tafoya dragged her Democratic opponent, Lieutenant Gov. Peggy Flanagan, over alleged welfare fraud in the state under her watch — as new polls predict an incredibly close match-up.
Tafoya, a former NFL reporter who won a crowded Republican primary last month, urged voters to “not give [Flanagan] a promotion” to the vacant Senate seat as the lt. governor leads Tafoya by 1.8 points, according to the latest Real Clear Politics poll.
“She really needs a pink slip,” Tafoya said during an appearance on Fox News Sunday.
Michele Tafoya makes her case as the US Senatorial nominee for the GOP at the Minnesota Republican state convention at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center in Duluth, Minn., on Saturday, May 29, 2026. Star Tribune via Getty Images The Republican then raised concerns about alleged welfare fraud that occurred during Flanagan’s tenure, especially when posing the question of where and how billions of dollars exited Minnesota.
In Minnesota, the latest fraud occurred in Hennepin County — where Minneapolis is. About $2 million was reportedly set aside for businesses affected by ICE raids. However, businesses saw just a quarter of that fund because the state received 300 legit applications, and 200 were flagged for potential fraud.
“They know they have a place here in Minnesota where they can commit this fraud,” Tafoya said. “Because no one has been held accountable. It’s remarkable.”
Tafoya claims the only sort of accountability seen in Minnesota’s fraud was Governor Tim Walz deciding not to run for a third term.
“We’ve got a clean house, and it’s going to start with the top of the ticket, and that’s the US Senate, where people are,” Tafoya said. “We’re now in a toss-up race here in Minnesota. We’ve been trending in the right direction, and that is good news for all of us and for the US Senate.”
Democratic candidate for US Senate, Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan speaks during a primary election night party at First Avenue on August 11, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Getty Images She is hoping to get a boost at the ballot box from non-college-educated voters who favor Republicans over Democrats by 16 percentage points, calling this group the “heart of the Trump coalition.”
“They are feeling some economic grievance and uncertainty and pressure,” Tafoya said. “For them, the question is not for whom to vote; it’s whether they’re going to bother at all.”
She hopes voters will see that the option between her and her Democratic challenger “could not be clearer.”
“It’s common sense versus crazy or chaos or communism or whatever kind of alliteration you want to use,” Tafoya said. “We are a common sense campaign that is looking to restore what Minnesota loves, which is the value of the dollar, not being stolen from, not having our leaders be untrustworthy.”
Minnesotans haven’t elected a Republican to represent them in the Senate since 2002, but Tafoya believes the North Star State is strongly “purple.”
Tafoya and Flanagan will face off in the general election in November.
