Minnesota DFL State Auditor Primary Takes Shape
Fraud has reframed the Auditor's job and heightened the political stakes. Candidates articulate their vision for the future.
This week, Blue North Beacon will dive into the Minnesota State Auditor’s race ahead of the DFL primary, featuring guest editorials from the four DFL candidates seeking the party’s endorsement:-- State Representative Dan Wolgamott, Former Duluth City Council Member Zack Filipovich, Tonka Bay Mayor Adam Jennings, and former Fergus Falls Mayor Ben Schierer.
THE BIG PICTURE
The State Auditor is constitutionally tasked with auditing local governments, ensuring fiscal compliance and providing transparency across Minnesota’s cities, counties, and school districts. The office doesn’t make policy per se, but it wields influence through performance audits, data analysis, and public reporting — which in turn, can shape debates on local spending, accountability, and tax dollars.
With heightened scrutiny over government spending and oversight given the state’s recent fraud scandals, the Auditor’s role has drawn increased attention and a competitive DFL field.
The current State Auditor, Julie Blaha, was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, bringing a focus on modernizing audit processes and elevating transparency in local finances. Her tenure as auditor has been largely uncontroversial and she remains popular among DFLers. Blaha’s decision not to seek reelection opens up a rare statewide seat and has invited robust competition among candidates seeking to replace her.
DFL CANDIDATE PREVIEW
State Representative Dan Wolgamott (DFL-St. Cloud)
State Representative Dan Wolgamott brings multiple terms of legislative experience to the Auditor’s race, including leadership roles on finance-related committees. Wolgamott emphasizes his work with local governments and state spending oversight, arguing that recent high-profile fraud and waste scandals illustrate the need for a more powerful and proactive Auditor’s office. In public remarks, he has vowed to expand the Auditor’s ability to investigate state agencies and programs, push for subpoena authority, and establish anonymous reporting channels for concerns about public spending.
Zack Filipovich (Former Duluth City Council Member)
Zack Filipovich has framed his candidacy around professional financial expertise and local governance experience. A certified management accountant and former Duluth councilor, Filipovich highlights his background as a finance manager and business consultant, often noting that he would be the first accountant in the Auditor’s office in decades — a skill set he contends is crucial for ensuring transparency, accountability, and trust across Minnesota’s local governments. To date, his campaign has emphasized strengthening oversight, improving access to financial data and tools for smaller communities, and hosting forums to communicate audit findings clearly to the public.
Adam Jennings - (Mayor of Tonka Bay)
Mayor Adam Jennings draws on a mix of public service, private-sector finance, and military experience. In his campaign materials, he stresses that the Auditor’s work is fundamentally about service and accountability, and aims to keep the office steady, transparent, and focused on supporting local governments. As mayor and a small-business owner, Jennings argues he understands both the practical challenges of municipal budgeting and the importance of reliable oversight. With respect to his priorities, he has emphasized the importance of protecting the integrity of the Auditor’s office and using audit tools to help communities manage resources more effectively.
Ben Schierer - (Former Ferus Falls Mayor)
A two-term mayor of Fergus Falls and small business owner, Schierer emphasizes his local government experience and rural perspective as central qualifications for State Auditor. On his campaign site, he highlights 16 years in local elected office — including leading a small city in one of the more conservative regions of the state — as proof he can build coalitions across divides and deliver practical results for communities of all sizes. Schierer frames the Auditor’s role not just as a technical watchdog but as a partner to cities and counties, focused on ensuring that every tax dollar is used effectively, efficiently, and fairly. He also argues that having leaders with rural experience at the state level will help the DFL better connect with voters outside Minnesota’s urban centers.
TOP ISSUES - Fraud at the Center
Fraud Scandals & Public Trust
Minnesota has been the focus of major fraud investigations that have become a central political issue statewide — from the Feeding Our Future pandemic-era fraud case to sprawling alleged waste and abuse in other social services programs providing childcare and medical support.
The fraud scandals have led to charges and convictions for more than 50 individuals while also increasing scrutiny of state oversight systems, including weaknesses in grant controls and internal compliance at the Minnesota Department of Human Services and other agencies. Appropriately, these scandals have put taxpayer protection and anti-fraud safeguards front and center.
Candidates for State Auditor will need to convince voters that they are both credible and equipped to strengthen oversight, improve fraud detection and prevention tools, and restore public confidence in how tax dollars are tracked and audited.
Auditor Authority & Scope
A key fault line to watch among contenders is how far they believe the Auditor’s statutory authority should extend. With heightened public scrutiny of fraud in state programs, some candidates are arguing for expanded audit powers — including stronger civil investigative tools and closer collaboration with law enforcement — while others emphasize bolstering the office’s core financial auditing strengths before pushing for broader mandates.
Modernization & Data Tools
The scandals have highlighted gaps in reporting systems and data analytics. Each of the candidates has proposed modernizing audit technology, improving real-time data access, and deploying advanced analytics to detect anomalies earlier. To date, the discussion about modernization has largely been shaped by the question of how to invest in technology while balancing costs and protecting privacy.
Local Government Support
Even with statewide focus on fraud, most audit work involves local units of government. Candidates are outlining strategies to support small cities and rural townships with limited audit resources — ensuring that improvements in oversight don’t inadvertently burden communities with fewer technical capabilities.
Bottom Line
The Minnesota State Auditor’s race has been transformed by the scale and visibility of recent fraud scandals, elevating a traditionally low-profile office into a test of how seriously Democrats intend to confront oversight failures.
With Blaha stepping aside, DFL voters are now weighing competing visions for what comes next, forcing candidates to articulate not just what the office does, but what it should do in a post-scandal environment.
The primary will turn less on ideology than on credibility — which candidate can most persuasively argue they have the tools, experience, and judgment to restore trust in how public dollars are safeguarded.