During a visit to Plover Thursday, Vice President JD Vance accused the Evers Administration of enabling fraud by refusing to turn over SNAP and voter roll data to the federal government.
Vice President JD Vance sharply criticized Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers duirng a visit to the state Thursday, accusing the Evers administration of refusing to share SNAP (FoodShare) recipient data and voter registration rolls with federal authorities to conceal potential fraud in welfare programs and elections.
Speaking at Point Precision, a machining facility in Plover, Vance addressed workers and supporters following President Donald Trump’s recent State of the Union address. The event, joined by Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), highlighted the administration’s economic agenda while escalating a nationwide push against alleged government waste and electoral irregularities.
“The Trump administration wants to ensure every dollar of taxpayer-funded assistance goes to those who truly need it, and every vote is cast by eligible American citizens,” Vance said. “Simple transparency. Yet Wisconsin’s leadership says no.”
Vance referenced Evers’ repeated rejections of federal requests for SNAP data—known locally as FoodShare—and voter rolls, part of a broader initiative announced after the administration halted $259 million in Medicaid payments to Minnesota over similar noncompliance.
“Ask yourself: Why wouldn’t they want to kick fraud off the welfare rolls and off the voter rolls?” Vance continued. “Even if the fraud is small—and we know it’s not zero—the number who should be illegally voting is zero. The number fraudulently collecting benefits should be zero. Refusing to share the data? That’s absurd.”
Vance went further, suggesting the refusal implies ulterior motives. “The only answer I can possibly come up with is they want to cheat,” he declared. “There’s no other real reason.”
Evers has defended the state’s position, arguing that handing sensitive data to Washington would effectively place elections under federal control. “Sending that off to Washington, D.C., is going to put Donald Trump in charge of elections,” Evers said in a recent interview. “Whether you’re Republican or Democrat, that’s the last thing you want.”
The dispute stems from longstanding federal demands for state data to verify eligibility and detect non-citizen participation or improper benefits, amid ongoing legal challenges and partisan tensions ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Vance praised local workers’ grit and contrasted it with what he called “obstruction in Madison,” while endorsing Rep. Tom Tiffany’s gubernatorial bid. The visit underscored Republican efforts to flip key Wisconsin seats and build momentum for greater federal oversight.
As applause filled the shop, Vance made clear the administration would not back down: “Help us clean this up, Governor Evers—or explain to the people why you won’t.”
