This page shows what the responsible officials said, in their own words, and what the personnel records show about who was fired and who resigned. It also asks every candidate for governor on the 2026 ballot the same three questions. Political facts move fast, and this page was last reviewed October 11, 2026.
Dated verbatim statements, from sworn testimony to resignation announcements. Where the only source is a partisan committee report, the card says so. Statements about the lawsuit and the payment stop are on the What officials said page, checked against the record there.
“Although Minnesota’s programs have overwhelmingly achieved their intended purposes, they are not immune from fraud. I will be the first to acknowledge that.”
“We do take responsibility.”
“I am certainly not proud this happened. I certainly understand it happened on my watch. Whether it predated me or not, I am here.”
Sworn testimony before the US House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, from the official hearing transcript.
“There’s more to do. A single taxpayer dollar wasted on fraud is a dollar too much to tolerate. … But the political gamesmanship we’re seeing from Republicans is only making that fight harder to win.”
“The buck stops with me.”
Statements made announcing the end of his reelection campaign.
“Fraud, should have stopped it sooner, we didn’t stop them. I accept that.”
“I think there does need to be accountability with that and part of that is, yep, that’s with me.”
“We left doors unlocked that we should have locked.”
On stage at the Star Tribune’s North Star Summit at the Guthrie Theater, in an interview the paper billed as his exit interview, less than two weeks after its report on missed warnings inside his administration.
“MDE disputes the OLA’s characterization regarding the adequacy of MDE’s oversight – MDE’s oversight of these programs met applicable standards and MDE made effective referrals to law enforcement.”
“The responsibility for this flagrant fraud lies with the indicted and convicted fraudsters.”
MDE’s official response letter, published inside the OLA special review it responds to.
“I did not have a background in fraud.”
KARE 11 reported the House Oversight interim report’s account of her transcribed interview. In the transcribed (unsworn) interview excerpted in that report, she said she told the governor’s team "I’m not sure I’m the best person to take it from here. I did not have a background in fraud," and that the department was "getting into a space that was not my forte." That account comes from a partisan staff report. It is carried here as what the committee reports she said, not as an established fact.
“The guilty plea marks an important step toward accountability following one of the most deep and offensive betrayals of public trust in our state’s history.”
Statement on the guilty plea of Abdi Nur Salah, his former senior policy aide, whom Frey fired in 2022 when the connection to the case became public.
The personnel records show who was fired and who resigned, in more detail than the governor's statement that people were fired.
Announcing his exit from the race on January 5, 2026, Governor Walz said, "We’ve fired people who weren’t doing their jobs."
KSTP 5 INVESTIGATES reviewed personnel records and found the significant departures were labeled resignations or "separations." Assistant DHS Commissioner Eric Grumdahl’s personnel file describes a "separation" with well-wishes from HR. Asked repeatedly for a list of people who were fired, the governor’s office did not produce one. It replied that “he’s talked publicly about the agency leadership he has replaced” and pointed to new commissioners at DHS and MDE, a new inspector general, and a new DHS assistant commissioner.
Commissioner of Education
Did not seek reappointment. KSTP reports she received a positive review on departure. Her tenure covered the period after the raids, and the OLA review of MDE was released the following year.
Commissioner of Human Services
The governor’s office announced the resignation with a laudatory review of her tenure. A DHS spokeswoman said the decision was Harpstead’s and voluntary.
Assistant Commissioner, DHS (oversaw the defrauded housing program)
Left the day before the House fraud committee’s hearing on the housing program he oversaw. Asked why at that hearing, Temporary Commissioner Shireen Gandhi declined to say, citing the Data Practices Act. His personnel file describes a "separation", and Rep. Kristin Robbins characterized it as a firing. The record supports neither label as established.
Inspector General, DHS (five years in the role)
Switched roles to senior counsel in the DHS general counsel’s office the week before Harpstead’s departure was announced, with a grateful sendoff note from the commissioner, per the Star Tribune.
Commissioner of Human Services
Removed one day before her scheduled Senate confirmation hearing and kept on as a deputy commissioner over Medicaid. The governor’s office framed the change as adding leadership and improving oversight, and Gandhi said her goal was to hand off DHS in a stronger position. The cited record does not label the change a firing or a resignation.
Senior policy aide to the Minneapolis mayor
Fired by Mayor Frey in 2022 when his connection to the case became public. He pleaded guilty to wire fraud in January 2025 and was sentenced October 1, 2026 to 33 months in prison, with $1,063,250 in restitution. He was a city employee, not a state one, and his is the one documented fraud-connected firing in this record.
Readers ask this question constantly. The answer comes from named records with a search date, followed by what the record does show.
No Minnesota state official or state employee has been charged in the charging records reviewed for this site, reviewed through October 11, 2026. Those records are the Justice Department’s and US Attorney’s (District of Minnesota) press releases and charging documents in the Feeding Our Future cases and the 2026 Minnesota health-care-fraud takedown, plus the Star Tribune and Sahan Journal case trackers.
Records searched: DOJ and USAO (D. Minn.) releases and charging documents, the Star Tribune fraud tally, and the Sahan Journal Feeding Our Future tracker. Searched through October 11, 2026.
One city official has been convicted. Abdi Nur Salah, a former senior policy aide to the Minneapolis mayor, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in January 2025 and was sentenced to 33 months on October 1, 2026. He was fired in 2022 when his connection to the case became public.
A former DHS Behavioral Health Administration employee is under Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigation over approval of a payment of more than $672,000 for one month of grant work, per KTTC (May 6, 2026). This is an investigation, not a charge, and no charge had been located as of October 11, 2026.
“Neither Frey nor Osman has been accused of any wrongdoing.” (WardheerNews, reporting the January 2025 pleas)
“Amba has not been charged with any crimes.” (Minnesota Star Tribune)
Minneapolis Council Member Jamal Osman and his wife incorporated the nonprofit Stigma-Free International in 2019. Abdi Nur Salah’s wire-fraud count stemmed from a 2020 email involving the nonprofit. According to the Attorney General’s 2023 civil complaint against a separate nonprofit, Amba transferred Stigma-Free International on October 15, 2020 to Ahmed Artan, who was later indicted in the case. Osman told the Star Tribune in March 2022 that he "gave up" his role in 2020, before it enrolled in the meal program.
The government’s exhibit list for the trial that began in February 2025 included two 2020 emails from Osman to Salah about Stigma-Free International and one from Salah to Osman. Osman has not been charged.
On October 18, 2023, Attorney General Ellison sued to shut down Urban Advantage Services, a nonprofit founded in November 2020 by Osman’s wife Ilo Amba. The civil complaint (Hennepin County, October 18, 2023, paragraph 2) alleged that it was "created by Ilo Amba for the purpose of directing funds to herself, her family members, and her co-conspirators". The case ended in a settlement, not a finding, and Amba has not been charged. On November 8, 2024 the AG announced a settlement requiring the nonprofit to dissolve over governance violations. MDE records show it was reimbursed more than $461,500 in federal funds in 2020 and 2021. It stopped operating in January 2022, the month of the FBI raids.
Included under a written decision in the research brief, because court exhibit lists and Attorney General filings name them and several outlets reported it. "Documented ties" means exactly the cited items and nothing more.
Campaign donations from people later charged, with the rules for what was counted, are on their own page.
Two records from these cases that touch elected officials, each with its source.
As of October 11, 2026, when the charging records were last searched for officials, no elected official has been charged in these cases in any source cited here. What the record does show is below. A donation does not establish knowledge or involvement. The documented contributions are on the donations page.
Abdi Nur Salah, a former senior policy aide to the Minneapolis mayor (and before that to a city council member), pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in January 2025, admitting he pocketed more than $1 million. He was fired in 2022 when his connection to the case became public. On October 1, 2026 he was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $1,063,250 in restitution.
Secondary source:Sahan JournalPrimary source:U.S. Attorney, MinnesotaSecondary source:KSTPFull record on the selected-defendants page
The governor’s September 2022 statement that a court order forced payments to resume was publicly corrected by the court itself. The dispute is documented in the oversight decisions and on the Statements page. The written correction, not the characterization, is the authoritative record.
Primary source:Minnesota Judicial BranchCharacterization source:St. Paul Pioneer Press
Each of the three tickets on the November 3 ballot (DFL, Republican, and Green) was asked the same three questions about official actions, campaign proposals, and dated on-the-record statements about the fraud. A proposal is a promise, not an action, and a quote shows what someone said, not that it is true.
DFL nominee for the November 3, 2026 general election. Won the August 11 primary with 615,041 votes (89.7 percent). DFL-endorsed May 30, 2026 on the first ballot.
US senator since 2007 and former Hennepin County attorney.
“You are right to be angry about the fraud. It is unacceptable, and it must end.” (May 3, 2026)
At her first campaign press conference, releasing the anti-fraud plan. A campaign pledge.
Characterization source:KSTPCharacterization source:Minnesota Reformer“I will not wait to take action, and that includes firing people who were in charge and failed to stop the fraud and replacing them with new leadership.” (September 14, 2026)
Statement responding to the Star Tribune report on the Walz administration’s fraud response. A campaign pledge. Compare it with the fired-vs-resigned record on this page.
Characterization source:Forum News Service“The first thing I’m going to do when we get in there is a top-to-bottom audit of state government. That’s about rooting out the fraud, making sure we’re vetting contracts like we should, and modernizing our technology.” (October 5, 2026)
At a joint appearance with Demuth before the Economic Club of Minnesota, per MinnPost. She made the same audit pledge at the August 5 Farmfest forum. A campaign pledge.
Characterization source:MinnPostCharacterization source:MPR NewsRoster sources: Secondary source:KTTCPrimary source:Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State
Republican nominee for the November 3, 2026 general election. Won the August 11 primary with 179,683 votes (43.4 percent) over Lindell (32.5 percent) and Qualls (21.4 percent). Demuth was not party-endorsed. The GOP convention endorsed Qualls on May 30, 2026, and Demuth entered the primary on June 2 after the party chair released candidates from their endorsement pledges, citing alleged voting irregularities.
State representative (13A) since 2019 and Speaker of the Minnesota House since 2025.
“As speaker of the House, I established the Fraud Prevention and Agency Oversight Committee because no longer did I want Democrats in the state of Minnesota to be able to say that there was no fraud.” (August 5, 2026)
At the Farmfest candidate forum in Morgan, per MPR News. Compare it with her official actions on this card.
Characterization source:MPR News“The Walz administration can’t point to a single person who has been fired over the fraud that has skyrocketed over the last eight years.” (September 14, 2026)
At a news conference after a Star Tribune report on the administration’s fraud response. She called for the firing of Assistant Education Commissioner Daron Korte and DCYF Deputy Commissioner Leah Montgomery. A governor’s spokesperson responded that Walz had installed new leadership at DHS and MDE. Compare it with the fired-vs-resigned record on this page.
Characterization source:Forum News ServiceCharacterization source:KTTC“No one has lost their job because of fraud, and that is a pure disrespect to the hardworking taxpayers of Minnesota.” (October 5, 2026)
At a joint appearance with Klobuchar before the Economic Club of Minnesota, per MinnPost. Compare it with the fired-vs-resigned record on this page.
Characterization source:MinnPostRoster sources: Secondary source:KTTCPrimary source:Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State
Green Party nominee on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot, per MPR News and KAXE
Has not held public office.
No fraud-related statements located in the sources reviewed as of October 11, 2026.
Roster sources: Secondary source:MPR NewsCharacterization source:KAXECharacterization source:Green Party of Minnesota
The August 11, 2026 primary produced two major-party nominees (Klobuchar and Demuth), and the other twelve primary tickets (six DFL, six Republican) were eliminated. The Green Party ticket (Steven Young and Jane Kirby) is also on the November 3 ballot, per MPR News and KAXE. Three candidates exited before the primary. Results per the State Canvassing Board certification of August 18, 2026.
The candidates eliminated in the August 11 primary and those who left the race earlier are kept, as recorded, in the 2026 primary archive.
The rule for who is included is written down and can be checked, so the list cannot quietly favor anyone.
What qualifies
What we prioritized
Where nothing was found, the card says so and gives the date searched. Every candidate gets the same three fields. Last reviewed October 11, 2026.
People charged but not convicted are presumed innocent, and amounts labeled alleged come from charging documents, not proven losses. Method and corrections