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YouTuber Nick Shirley is claiming victory after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced he would not seek re-election. Shirley attributes the decision to his viral video alleging daycare fraud, which has drawn national attention and led to a federal freeze on childcare payments. The announcement comes amid increasing scrutiny of the Walz administration over alleged fraud in state programs and internal pressure from within the Democratic party.
YouTuber Nick Shirley wasted no time claiming victory after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced he was ending his re‑election bid. “I ENDED TIM WALZ,” Shirley declared in a blunt X post Monday, seemingly crediting his viral exposé on alleged daycare fraud for forcing the Democrat out of the race.
Walz framed the reversal as a move to “step out of the race and let others worry about the election while I focus on the work,” arguing he couldn’t devote full attention to both campaigning and confronting fraud in state programs. The decision follows national attention on a viral video Shirley posted online last month alleging misuse of childcare funds, a clip amplified by prominent conservatives and followed by a federal freeze on certain child‑care payments to Minnesota. The video, which has drawn millions of views on YouTube and X, features Shirley and an associate visiting locations they say are Somali-run centers that do not provide services while receiving public money. Shirley’s video centers on the unverified claim that some Somali-run day care centers receiving government subsidies provide little or no actual childcare. FILE - Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago. Minnesota state officials have faced a wave of escalating fraud allegations. The Department of Justice, under Merrick Garland, first uncovered welfare fraud in the state in 2022 with the “Feeding Our Future“ scheme, which is estimated to have cost taxpayers around $250 million. To date, 57 defendants have been convicted and 78 others charged, according to The Associated Press . Since then, additional potential fraud cases have come to light. In mid-December, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson stated that more than $9 billion in federal funds, distributed across 14 state-run programs since 2018, could have been misappropriated. Many of the defendants in the fraud cases are of East African descent and are believed to be part of Minnesota’s Somali immigrant community, the largest in the United States. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Minnesota, as reported by The Associated Press, 82 of the 92 defendants charged so far are Somali Americans. The embattled Walz, who was former Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate in 2024, has spent recent weeks defending his administration’s handling of the issue and fending off attacks from critics. Pressure has mounted on Walz from all sides, with President Donald Trump and multiple Republicans lambasting him for what they called persistent oversight failures, while voices within the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party have questioned whether he can still maintain cohesion among the base. The Star Tribune reported that a growing number of Democratic elected officials and activists have raised concerns about Walz’s prospects if he remains in the gubernatorial race. In recent weeks, nearly a dozen Democrats told the newspaper that they do not believe he should seek re-election. Nick Shirley speaks during a roundtable meeting with President Donald Trump on antifa in the State Dining Room at the White House, Wednesday, October 8, 2025, in Washington, as Savanah Hernandez listens. This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
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