Peggy Flanagan and Michele Tafoya clashed over Minnesota’s fraud scandal, taxes and immigration during their first and only scheduled debate in the state’s US Senate race before the November election.
The hour-long contest, held in St Paul on Friday, was marked by sharp exchanges as Democratic nominee Flanagan defended her record as lieutenant governor and Republican challenger Tafoya sought to hold her responsible for fraud in state programmes. The seat is being vacated by Democratic senator Tina Smith. ([mprnews.org](https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/10/16/peggy-flanagan-michele-tafoya-debate-ahead-of-minnesota-us-senate-election))
Tafoya repeatedly argued that Flanagan, as second-in-command in the Walz administration, could not distance herself from failures in oversight.
“My goodness, she was second in charge in this state, and she’s just going to point her finger at Gov. Tim Walz?” Tafoya said, accusing her opponent of changing position for political convenience.
She also claimed that billions of dollars had been allowed to disappear through fraud, although the scale and scope of losses in different state programmes have been the subject of continuing investigations and legal cases.
Flanagan acknowledged that taxpayers were angry but said she had supported the creation of an independent inspector general’s office and tougher penalties for those convicted of fraud.
She argued that Walz had accepted responsibility for the state’s oversight failures, while her own priorities had included paid family and medical leave, a child tax credit and free school meals.
Fraud dispute dominates Minnesota Senate debate
The argument became one of the defining moments of the debate, with Tafoya portraying Flanagan as an establishment Democrat attempting to escape responsibility and Flanagan accusing her rival of exploiting the scandal.
Tafoya has made fraud a central issue in her campaign, while Flanagan has sought to point to measures she says would strengthen scrutiny of public spending and increase punishment for fraudsters. ([cbsnews.com](https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/peggy-flanagan-michelle-tafoya-us-senate-debate/?intcid=CNR-02-0623))
Taxes provided a rare area of partial overlap. Tafoya said Minnesotans should be allowed to keep more of their income and accused her opponent of answering every problem with higher taxes and bigger government.
Flanagan said she supported elements of the federal tax legislation known as the “Big Beautiful Bill”, including provisions removing tax on tips and overtime. She warned, however, that both measures were due to expire.
The candidates also attacked each other over the federal immigration operation in Minnesota, known as Operation Metro Surge. Flanagan criticised Tafoya for using footage of the enforcement campaign in her campaign launch and accused her of blaming Renee Good for her own death.
Tafoya said the deaths of Good and Alex Pretti were devastating and criticised the way the operation had been handled by former Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem. She nevertheless blamed state leaders for what she described as a failure to protect protesters, immigrants, police officers and the wider public. ([mprnews.org](https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/10/16/peggy-flanagan-michele-tafoya-debate-ahead-of-minnesota-us-senate-election))
Immigration and public order were closely linked in Tafoya’s argument, while Flanagan called for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to be dismantled and replaced with a system offering secure borders, due process and a pathway to citizenship for law-abiding migrants.
President Donald Trump endorsed Tafoya days before the debate, giving Flanagan another line of attack. She said her opponent would act as a “rubber stamp” for the president, while Tafoya has attempted to present herself as an independent Republican willing to break with her party.
The candidates also differed over tariffs, the war in Iran, abortion, Social Security and aid to Israel, but the contest repeatedly returned to the fraud allegations and the question of who should be held accountable for Minnesota’s oversight failures.
Election Day in Minnesota is set for November 3, with the debate expected to be the only time Flanagan and Tafoya share a stage before voters go to the polls. ([mprnews.org](https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2026/10/16/flanagan-tafoya-clash-in-first-us-senate-debate-ahead-of-election-day))
