Minnesota state officials have rejected demands from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi for access to voter rolls and welfare data. This comes right after a federal immigration agent shot and killed a local resident during a raid in the Twin Cities. The standoff stems from a major federal push on immigration enforcement that started in late 2025, putting the Democratic-led state at odds with the Trump administration.
Background
The trouble began in December 2025 when the federal government launched Operation Metro Surge. Thousands of agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, along with Border Patrol and other Department of Homeland Security units, arrived in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area. Officials said the goal was to tackle immigration issues and root out fraud in state programs. More than 3,000 agents showed up, including about 2,000 from ICE.
State leaders saw it differently. They called the deployment heavy-handed and said it disrupted daily life. Schools locked down, businesses lost customers, and local police had to handle extra calls. Families stayed home out of fear. Pregnant women skipped doctor visits. Some schools in Minneapolis closed for days, affecting thousands of kids. Attendance kept dropping as parents worried about sending children out.
Before the agents arrived, the federal government had asked for Minnesota's lists of Medicaid and food stamp recipients, plus voter registration data. State officials said no, worried it would lead to targeting people for deportation. A court in California later allowed some Medicaid data sharing, but only for those without legal status. Vice President JD Vance said openly in Minneapolis that the data would help with immigration enforcement.
Minnesota fought back with lawsuits. The state attorney general, along with the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, sued the Department of Homeland Security. They claimed the operations broke federal rules and stepped on state rights. A group of 20 other state attorneys general backed them with a legal filing, calling for a stop to the actions.
Key Details
The latest flashpoint was a shooting on January 7, 2026. A DHS agent killed Renee Good during an operation. Details are still coming out, but it added fuel to the fire. Just days later, on January 22, Bondi sent a letter directly to Governor Tim Walz. She demanded the data and an end to what she called sanctuary policies. She tied it straight to the ICE work on the ground.
"You and your office must restore the rule of law, support ICE officers, and bring an end to the chaos in Minnesota." – U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi
Walz's office fired back in a statement. They said the federal moves were not normal law enforcement. Local police racked up overtime responding to the fallout. In Minneapolis alone, officers worked over 3,000 extra hours by early January. The city estimated costs topping $2 million in just a few days. Agents left detained people's cars blocking roads, prompting 911 calls. Protests led to more police work to keep order.
Businesses reported big drops in sales, some as high as 80 percent. Owners shut doors to avoid trouble. The state pointed out that Minnesota has fewer undocumented immigrants than average, about 1.5 percent of the population. Places like Texas or Florida have more, but no big agent surges there.
Federal Data Push
Bondi's letter renewed calls for voter rolls, Medicaid lists, and SNAP data. Federal plans include checking these against a Homeland Security system to find noncitizens. Minnesota worries about privacy and misuse. They have not said how they plan to store or use it all safely. State lawsuits argue this is really about pressuring blue states.
What This Means
The back-and-forth shows deep splits over immigration. Federal agents keep operating despite the lawsuits. A recent court hearing saw Minnesota lawyers call it extortion for data. The state says the raids hit workplaces and homes without clear targets, pulling workers from jobs that help the community.
Local resources are stretched thin. Police focus shifts from regular duties to managing federal fallout. Schools and health services suffer as people avoid them. Economy takes a hit with closed shops and scared customers.
Legal fights could drag on. The coalition brief asks for a quick court order to halt things. Federal side says data fights fraud in elections and aid programs. Governor Walz and others frame it as an overreach that hurts everyday people.
Tensions run high in the Twin Cities. More raids mean more risk of clashes. State officials vow to keep resisting data handovers. Federal pressure does not let up. This could set examples for other states facing similar pushes. Communities wait to see if courts step in or if operations wind down.
