Minnesota Democratic Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flannagan, a Native American and Senate candidate, is being accused of political pandering for wearing a hijab to a shopping mall to show support for Somalian residents at the center of an alleged, multi-billion dollar fraud scheme.  

She was seen on a Somali TV station on Thursday at the mall wearing the head cover worn by some Muslim women. 

“Salam Alaikum. My name’s Peggy Flanagan. I am the lieutenant governor of Minnesota, and I’m really honored and humbled to be here with all of you today,” she is heard saying. “I am incredibly clear that the Somali community is part of the fabric of the state of Minnesota. ... when I think of being part of Minnesota and growing up here, the Somali community has always been a part of my Minnesota.”

Federal prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota in 2022 began probing a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future, a group at the center of what the Justice Department called one of the largest pandemic relief fraud schemes in history, according to Fox News.

Roughly $250 million in fraudulent claims have led to 78 people being charged as part of what prosecutors say is a $9 billion fraud scheme. Many of those charged are from Minnesota's Somalian community.

In the aftermath, President Donald Trump announced last month that he would end “Temporary Protected Status” for Somalians in the state. 

Flanagan is competing in the Minnesota Democratic primary against Rep. Angie Craig and another candidate for the seat being left open by retiring Democrat Sen, Tina Smith. 

Minnesota Rep. and House Republican Whip Tom Emmer has called Flanagan wearing the hijab "stunt."

"Peggy Flanagan and Angie Craig are battling it out in an attempt to win over the far-left radicals in the Twin Cites," Emmer told Fox News Digital. "Anyone with common sense sees right through this stunt."