A Somali refugee turned St. Cloud businessman whose childcare center has racked up years of state licensing violations is now one step closer to the Minnesota Legislature.
Abdi Daisane won last week’s Democratic primary with 62.5% of the vote, advancing to the November general election against Republican Mike Conway in House District 14A.
Daisane, who was born in Somalia and spent time in a Kenyan refugee camp before entering the United States, has owned Blooming Kids Child Care Center in St. Cloud since 2017.
Alpha News first reported on the center’s history of violations in July 2024, when Daisane was making his first run for the House seat.
While Daisane lost that race to incumbent Republican Rep. Bernie Perryman, the violations kept coming.
Since that report, Blooming Kids has been cited for 16 violations across three subsequent licensing reviews, according to Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) records reviewed by Alpha News.
Meanwhile, a 2023 BBC News Somali article featuring his wife, Ayaan Kaaba, is drawing attention online after Kaaba described crossing over the U.S.-Mexico border so that she could be with Daisane, according to a translation.
“I smuggled myself and jumped over the wall for my love,” Kaaba said, referring to Daisane, according to an English translation of the 2023 article. “She is one of hundreds of Somalis who have jumped the US-Mexico border wall,” the translation says.
Alpha News reached out to Daisane’s campaign for comment on the accuracy of this description but did not receive a response.
Children subjected to ‘prohibited disciplinary actions’
During an Oct. 16, 2024, licensing review, DHS cited Blooming Kids for seven violations.
Among them, regulators found that “children were subjected to prohibited disciplinary actions.”
DHS also found that the center failed to submit a background-study request when required and did not have documentation showing that a teacher met required qualifications.
Other violations involved insufficient furnishings, equipment, materials or supplies; a space that was not clean; equipment and furniture that were not in good repair; and carpeting or rugs that were not in good repair or did not meet safety requirements.
State later cited lack of supervision
The violations continued into 2025.
During an April 30, 2025, review, DHS cited Blooming Kids for four additional violations. This time, regulators found that “staff did not supervise the children at all times.”
DHS also found that children were not placed within the correct age category, the program was not operating within the terms of its license, and the center’s space was not clean.
Another DHS review on Oct. 2, 2025, resulted in five more violations.
Regulators found that Blooming Kids “did not place all infants to sleep on their backs or have the required documentation for an alternate position.”
The center also failed to comply with CPR and first-aid training requirements, according to DHS.
Additionally, DHS found that infant bottles were not properly labeled with each child’s first and last name and that areas used by children were not in good repair.
The center was also ordered to pay a $400 fine for two background-study violations, including allowing an employee to work for nearly seven months after the employee’s background study expired.
Violations stretch back years
The latest findings add to a regulatory history that predates Daisane’s current campaign.
Alpha News previously reported that Blooming Kids was cited for multiple violations during licensing reviews conducted in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Those violations included instances in which the correct number of qualified staff were not present, staff orientation training did not include all required items, equipment and furniture were not in good repair, areas used by children were not in good repair, the center was not clean, and documentation was unavailable to demonstrate that a teacher met qualifications.
A 2021 maltreatment investigation also found that children’s files lacked required immunization and physical-exam documentation. According to DHS, the daycare submitted correction documentation for the violations.
The daycare’s history of violations eventually made national news.
In December 2025, the New York Post highlighted Blooming Kids’ history of state violations in a story about Daisane’s latest campaign for the Minnesota Legislature.
Alpha News contacted Daisane’s campaign for comment regarding the additional DHS violations and fine but did not receive a response.
Jenna Gloeb
Jenna Gloeb is an Edward R. Murrow Award-winning journalist, media producer, public speaker, and screenwriter. Most recently, she worked as a reporter and on-air host for CCX Media. Jenna is a Minnesota native and resides in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, daughter, and two dogs.
