WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • Peggy Flanagan defeated Michele Tafoya in Minnesota’s closely watched Senate race, leading by 10 points when the contest was called.
  • Flanagan will become the first Native American woman elected to the Senate.
  • The campaign drew scrutiny over the Walz and Flanagan administration’s handling of the Feeding Our Future fraud scandal.
  • Flanagan also faced controversy involving immigration enforcement, transgender policy, and $7.9 million provided to a group distributing drug use kits.

Minnesota Democrat Peggy Flanagan defeated former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya in a closely watched Senate contest Tuesday, overcoming scrutiny surrounding multiple fraud scandals during her service as lieutenant governor in Governor Tim Walz’s administration.

Flanagan held a lead of 10 points when the race was called at 12:20 a.m. The result delivered the Senate seat to a Democrat, though the contest proved more uncomfortable for the party than its leaders might have preferred.

Flanagan will become the first Native American woman elected to the Senate. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who campaigned alongside Flanagan, previously claimed Cherokee heritage during her own Senate campaigns a decade ago.

DNA testing later showed Warren had, at most, 1/1,056th Cherokee ancestry. Warren’s appearance with Flanagan therefore brought an awkward bit of political history into a race already loaded with controversy.

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Much of the scrutiny focused on how the Walz and Flanagan administration handled the Feeding Our Future fraud scandal. State agencies distributed hundreds of millions of dollars to a network of Somali American nonprofit organizations through a federally funded food program intended for schoolchildren.

The organizations stole at least $250 million by using falsified invoices for tens of thousands of meals that were never served. The staggering fraud became a central issue hanging over Flanagan as she sought a promotion from Minnesota government to the United States Senate.

The scandal also brought increased attention to Minnesota’s large Somali population. It prompted a Trump administration crackdown on potential visa and immigration fraud, with thousands of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents sent to the state.

That enforcement push became a rallying point for Democrats following the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Both were shot during physical altercations with ICE agents who were carrying out enforcement raids.

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Flanagan responded to the shootings by saying ICE should be “ripped apart.” Her statement placed immigration enforcement squarely within the political fight surrounding the Senate campaign and the broader fallout from the fraud scandal.

Tafoya nonetheless fell short despite the scrutiny surrounding Flanagan and the administration in which she served. The final margin when the race was called showed Flanagan ahead by 10 points, enough to secure victory after a contest watched closely beyond Minnesota.

Fraud was not the only controversy attached to Flanagan’s record. Her administration has provided $7.9 million in state money to a group that distributes “booty bumping” kits designed to allow addicts to take drugs through the rectum.

Flanagan has also advocated for transgender rights, particularly concerning gender affirming care for children. That issue generated additional attention because of clothing she wore publicly in 2023.

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The shirt displayed a large hunting knife along with the words “Protect Trans Kids” across the chest. The image and message were already controversial, but they received renewed scrutiny following a deadly shooting in Minneapolis.

In August 2025, Robin Westman, a biological male who was 23, opened fire at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis. The shooting brought fresh attention to Flanagan’s shirt and its knife imagery.

Despite questions involving fraud oversight, immigration enforcement, drug related spending, and transgender policy, Flanagan held off Tafoya. Her victory sends another member of the Walz administration into national office while leaving Minnesota voters with the controversies that shadowed the campaign.

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