Report: Minnesota Dem Senate Nominee Peggy Flanagan Falsely Claimed Phi Beta Kappa Membership, Misrepresented College Credentials
Minnesota Democrat U.S. Senate nominee and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan previously claimed she graduated Phi Beta Kappa despite never belonging to the prestigious honor society, while her official state biography suggests she completed two college majors when she actually earned one major and a minor, according to an exclusive report published Wednesday by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal reported October 21 that Flanagan made the Phi Beta Kappa claim during a March 2016 legislative hearing while advocating for legislation aimed at increasing teacher diversity in Minnesota public schools.
At the time, Flanagan was serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives and discussing how greater diversity among college instructors helped transform her academic performance after she graduated from high school with a 1.75 grade-point average.
“Everything changed, there was a switch, something clicked,” Flanagan said during the hearing. “I graduated Phi Beta Kappa because I saw myself reflected in my teacher and I saw myself reflected in my curriculum.”
However, the Journal found that a commencement program from Flanagan’s 2002 graduating class at the University of Minnesota did not identify her as an honors student, despite recognizing graduates with grade-point averages of at least 3.5.
The newspaper also reported that the university’s current GPA requirement for seniors seeking Phi Beta Kappa membership is 3.65.
On October 12, the Journal contacted Flanagan’s campaign seeking documentation establishing her membership in the honor society, which the publication described as the nation’s oldest and among its most exclusive.
The newspaper also informed the campaign that Phi Beta Kappa’s headquarters could release any existing membership records with Flanagan’s permission.
Eight days later, the campaign acknowledged that Flanagan had never been a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
“The lieutenant governor was nominated for Phi Beta Kappa, but like too many other students, she couldn’t afford the application fees to become a part of the honor society,” campaign spokeswoman Alexandra Fetissoff told the Journal.
According to the newspaper, the current lifetime membership fee for Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Minnesota is $99, although the cost was likely substantially lower when Flanagan attended college more than two decades ago.
The Journal also noted that many chapters waive membership fees or offer other accommodations to students experiencing financial hardship.
The campaign’s explanation indicates that Flanagan was nominated for the organization but did not ultimately join, despite her previous statement that she graduated Phi Beta Kappa.
The Journal uncovered a separate discrepancy involving Flanagan’s college education and how her academic qualifications were described in her official state biography.
The biography states that Flanagan “earned her bachelor’s degree in American Indian studies and child psychology,” language that suggests she completed a double major.
However, the newspaper reported that Flanagan’s College of Liberal Arts commencement program identified child psychology as her major.
Her campaign acknowledged that she did not complete a double major, explaining that she earned a minor in American Indian studies.
Flanagan has also faced scrutiny over Medicaid overpayments involving her tribe. Breitbart News reported October 13 that a 2019 state audit identified more than $29 million in overpayments to the White Earth Nation and Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe for opioid addiction treatment programs over a decade. The total included an additional $3.8 million under the Walz-Flanagan administration in 2019, with $2.4 million going to White Earth and $1.4 million to Leech Lake. Auditors found that most of the increase resulted from payments made after the state determined the practice violated legal requirements. Flanagan called repayment demands “unacceptable,” although the reporting did not establish fraud by either tribe or her involvement in the repayment solution. The issue resurfaced amid broader investigations into potential fraud exceeding $9 billion in Minnesota’s taxpayer-funded programs, with Flanagan pointing to Walz when questioned about her responsibility.
A separate 2025 audit of Flanagan’s office identified 12 findings involving financial management, Breitbart News reported October 5. Auditors found unrecovered employee overpayments, $7,893 in flower purchases and $7,343 in furniture purchases split into transactions below a $5,000 limit, errors in 14 of 40 employee reimbursements, incomplete documentation for 40 of 41 vendor payments, and incorrect state-airplane payments. The office said recovering employee overpayments was “not in the public interest,” while four applicable findings from a previous audit remained unresolved. Minnesota Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson criticized the findings, saying, “Overpaying employees, losing state property, and stiffing vendors for months—it’s no wonder massive fraud is exploding across state government.”
Breitbart News also reported October 16 that Flanagan and Walz appointed Trahern Pollard, founder of We Push for Peace, to Minnesota’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee in 2021 and reappointed him in 2025. Minneapolis paid his nonprofit nearly $2 million for violence prevention services between 2021 and March 2025. In May 2026, the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office sued Pollard and another individual, alleging they diverted more than $6.5 million in nonprofit assets, including over $6 million benefiting Pollard personally. The allegations do not establish wrongdoing by Flanagan.
On October 20, Breitbart News reported that Flanagan pledged additional funding for culturally relevant treatments and care during a 2023 Somali American Coalition event, while highlighting the administration’s proposed $1.5 billion housing package and support for multifamily housing. She also promised to address requests for more detailed education and homelessness data and highlighted a proposed $200 million initiative for organizations serving minority and immigrant communities. “We have set aside $200 million to go directly to organizations that serve communities of color, immigrant communities, Native communities, because we know how to spend that money best and invest in the things that our communities need,” Flanagan said. Her remarks have resurfaced amid investigations into fraud involving Minnesota’s taxpayer-funded programs, although she did not specify recipients or funding amounts for the proposed culturally relevant treatment services.
Report: Minnesota Dem Senate Nominee Peggy Flanagan Falsely Claimed Phi Beta Kappa Membership, Misrepresented College Credentials
Minnesota Democrat U.S. Senate nominee and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan previously claimed she graduated Phi Beta Kappa despite never belonging to the prestigious honor society, while her official state biography suggests she completed two college majors when she actually earned one major and a minor, according to an exclusive report published Wednesday by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal reported October 21 that Flanagan made the Phi Beta Kappa claim during a March 2016 legislative hearing while advocating for legislation aimed at increasing teacher diversity in Minnesota public schools.
At the time, Flanagan was serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives and discussing how greater diversity among college instructors helped transform her academic performance after she graduated from high school with a 1.75 grade-point average.
“Everything changed, there was a switch, something clicked,” Flanagan said during the hearing. “I graduated Phi Beta Kappa because I saw myself reflected in my teacher and I saw myself reflected in my curriculum.”
However, the Journal found that a commencement program from Flanagan’s 2002 graduating class at the University of Minnesota did not identify her as an honors student, despite recognizing graduates with grade-point averages of at least 3.5.
The newspaper also reported that the university’s current GPA requirement for seniors seeking Phi Beta Kappa membership is 3.65.
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