Good morning. TGIF! And happy graduation day to Audrey B.!

DHS disenrolled 3,400 Medicaid providers, but only flagged a small fraction for further fraud review. As part of the state’s agreement with the federal government’s Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Department of Human Services was required to revalidate nearly 5,600 providers of high-risk Medicaid programs by May 31. According to data released Thursday, the agency disenrolled more than 3,400 providers, the majority due to incomplete paperwork and documentation. Ellie Roth reports that many providers say they were disenrolled simply because the state ran out of time to meet the federal government’s deadline. Check out the full story to find out what this means for providers and patients.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth says she’ll stay in the race for governor even though Republican Party leaders walked back the chair’s position allowing unendorsed candidates to run in a primary. Yesterday, the Minnesota Republican Party’s executive committee said Chair Alex Plechash was out of bounds when he told candidates they didn’t have to abide by their commitments to drop out of the race for governor if they didn’t get the endorsement. Demuth cited that statement earlier this week as a key reason she decided to move on to run in a primary election against the party’s endorsed candidate Kendall Qualls. She said she’s staying the course. “Delegates and party leaders expressed serious concerns while the state convention was occurring, and have continued to express such concerns after the state convention. We share those concerns,” Demuth said in a statement. “The Demuth-Wilson campaign is laser focused on defeating Amy Klobuchar and the Democrat Machine in November.” Qualls said Plechash “created a lot of confusion” with his statement to undercut the endorsement’s binding nature. “It has since been retracted with a unanimous vote of the executive committee.”

Republican-endorsed governor candidate Kendall Qualls says the campaign focus this year shouldn't be on President Donald Trump. The retired health executive is one of a handful of GOP candidates heading to the GOP primary race to determine the party nominee for governor. Those contenders – Mike Lindell, Lisa Demuth and Qualls – have been hesitant to criticize anything the president has done, and are all hoping to get Trump’s backing. "The issues are going to be what's happening in our state, not if President Trump and I are aligned on national issues,” Qualls said during an interview Thursday with “All Things Considered” host Clay Masters. “These issues that we're dealing with right now is that people in our state are hemorrhaging because of the heavy yoke of cost of living that we have because of Democrat policies in our state." Qualls also said he’s better positioned to motivate his party’s base this election year. He said his endorsement at last weekend’s GOP convention is a testament to that connection, and said his rival Demuth would have trouble in both the primary and a general election. "The average Minnesotan is looking for people that can speak with them directly about the issues they face,” he said. “Lisa was able to have that opportunity to do that. She cannot energize the base party, the Republican Party. " The primary election is on August 11th. The GOP winner is likely to face Democrat Amy Klobuchar in the fall.

The verdict is in for almost all judicial races: The judge there now will be there after November. There are only three judicial seats among the 122 on the ballot where more than one candidate will be listed. Notably, the two state Supreme Court justices on this year’s ballot – Associate Justices Sarah Hennesy and Paul Thissen – had no one file against them. Same goes for the five Court of Appeals judges who must get voters’ OK for new terms. Judges are in almost all circumstances appointed by the governor but must periodically stand for new terms. Minnesota has so far bucked the trend of expensive and partisan judicial elections.

More independents and third party (Green) candidates have been validated for the ballot. That includes Marisa Simonetti who is running as an independent for the U.S. Senate. Simonetti lost her bid for Hennepin County commissioner in 2024, after she was charged for throwing a tarantula at a person renting a room at her home. A jury found her guilty on a gross misdemeanor and two misdemeanors in that case, but she has yet to be sentenced. Woodbury City Council member Kim Wilson filed to run against DFL Rep. Ethan Cha in a race with no Republican, although she’s viewed as a conservative on the suburban council. She wrote on Facebook, “Being an independent conservative means I can vote my conservative values without having to be subjected to party beliefs.” In filings for the Minnesota Senate, there is an Independent candidate, a United New Independence candidate and a Green party candidate. 

A political ad against DFL-endorsed Senate candidate Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan has come under scrutiny for its use of AI. The ad run by North Star Dawn, a political action committee backing Flanagan’s democratic opponent U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, shows Flanagan putting her hand out for money - an animation made using a photo of Flanagan. “My opponent's super PAC is using an AI deepfake of me to mislead voters. They can't win with the truth - so they're resorting to lies,” Flanagan posted online. Craig’s campaign said in a statement, "The Congresswoman has been consistent that she does not support the use of A.I. in political ads. She has also co-sponsored legislation that would prohibit deepfakes. The Lt. Governor’s complaints are meant to distract from the fact she accepted millions of corporate dollars as chair of the DLGA." The Minnesota Legislature passed a bill in 2023 prohibiting the use of deep fakes in campaign ads within 90 days of an election. The Minnesota Attorney General’s office declined to comment on the matter and did not say whether they’ve received any complaints about the ad.

Rep. Peggy Bennett’s run for governor has come to an end, but not by her choice. The Albert Lea Republican said her running mate , Rep. Elliott Engen, texted her just four hours before the Tuesday filing deadline that he’d changed his mind. “I am incredibly disappointed in this legislative colleague. I was under the impression that he was ready to go,” Bennett said in a statement. “Unknown to me, he filed on Tuesday to run for his old House seat and primary the endorsed GOP candidate for that seat. I had no indication that any of this was going to happen. I am dumbfounded to say the least.” Engen reposted a statement on X . "Peggy is a terrific servant leader, and I wish I could be the partner she deserves in a Lt. Gov. Unfortunately, this was not in the best interest of my family,” he said. “Like so many other young families across our state, we aren't in the financial position to have logistically made this work.” Engen did not offer his name for endorsement for state auditor at the GOP convention despite running for that office for many months. He filed to run again for his House seat. The GOP endorsed another candidate in that race, Sebastian Stoss. In a statement after Engen withdrew, Stoss said: “I am grateful for the work Rep. Elliott Engen has done for our district in the House.”

Lawmakers rejected all local sales tax requests, leaving projects in limbo. The Senate version of a catch-all tax bill approved 37 local tax proposals, including one to upgrade parks in Vergas, build a new judicial center in Waseca County and replace a public works facility in Robbinsdale. Despite bipartisan support in both chambers for various local sales tax measures, those measures didn’t make it into the final tax bill negotiated at the end of the legislative session. Harshawn Ratanpal explains why and what that means for firefighters in Audubon who say they desperately need the money a sales tax could raise to replace their fire station, which is falling apart and poses health hazards to the firefighters.

New federal work requirements for SNAP started Monday, and that’s a challenge for some young Minnesotans transitioning out of foster care. The nonprofit Foster Advocates and some Minnesota lawmakers pushed for several bills during the just finished legislative session meant to better support foster youth, including those transitioning out of foster care. Those bills ultimately stalled. Now, funding cuts and stricter work and education requirements have gone into effect as part of what President Donald Trump calls his “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Hannah Yang reports on how those changes may affect young adults who have aged out of foster care who often struggle to find stable housing and jobs and who depend on those benefits.