Politics
Somali-Born Daycare Owner’s Campaign For Office Hits Major Snag Amid Fraud Scandal
A Somali-born day care owner is jumping back into Minnesota politics just as his community and the child care industry are being rocked by an explosive fraud scandal that has ballooned into the billions.
Abdi Daisane, who has not been accused of wrongdoing in the alleged fraud that could total as much as $9 billion, announced on Christmas Eve that he plans to run for the state Legislature again in 2026. The move comes two years after he lost a race to a Republican incumbent.
Daisane has also been down this road before, falling short in a St. Cloud City Council bid in 2016.
He opened Blooming Kids Child Center in St. Cloud in 2018, saying he saw a growing need for early-childhood education in the area. Affordable child care has remained a central theme of his political campaigns.
“There’s higher needs for childcare in greater Minnesota, so when I saw the need for childcare, and I found the opportunity to open one, I jumped on it,” Daisane told the St. Cloud Times ahead of his 2024 loss.
But his business record has drawn scrutiny.
Blooming Kids Child Center, which is licensed for up to 113 children, has been cited multiple times by the Minnesota Department of Human Services for violations of state requirements.
Since 2021, regulators flagged repeated issues at the facility, some occurring year after year. The center was cited for problems ranging from missing medical information for children to incomplete documentation showing staff met qualification standards, along with staffing shortages and poorly maintained equipment.
All of the violations have since been corrected, the outlet reported.
Daisane acknowledged responsibility for the infractions, but argued the state also bears blame, pointing to widespread staffing shortages in the child care industry driven by low wages and limited benefits, according to the Times.
Now, as Minnesota grapples with fallout from massive fraud allegations tied to child care and other public programs, Daisane is betting voters will give him another shot and look past the turbulence surrounding his industry.
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