Somali-born childcare owner flips long-held Republican seat in Minnesota House

Abdi Daisane, a Somali-born childcare business owner, has won Minnesota House District 14A, defeating St. Cloud City Council president Mike Conway. His victory flips a seat Republicans had held for more than two decades and makes him the first Somali-born state lawmaker from St. Cloud. The result has drawn scrutiny because his daycare received substantial public funding and was connected through a food programme sponsor to a nonprofit that settled a fraud case.

Blooming Kids Child Care Center received $7.29 million from Minnesota’s Child Care Assistance Program since 2018 and nearly $600,000 from a federally funded food programme since 2020. The programme’s sponsor, Partners in Nutrition, agreed to an $18.5 million civil settlement over false meal claims and will dissolve, but Blooming Kids was not named in the case and no finding links Daisane or his daycare to the fraud. Reports have also raised concerns about the daycare’s licensing record and operations; some violations were resolved, while further citations were issued in October. Daisane won by 9,164 votes to 8,570, after losing his first bid for the seat in 2024.