Tom Emmer

ST. CLOUD — Vice President JD Vance has canceled his Friday, Oct. 30, appearance in St. Cloud.

A spokesperson from the U.S. Attorney's Office late Thursday night confirmed to Forum News Service that the event was canceled and no reason was given.

According to a White House news release, Vance and members of the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud were to hold a news conference Friday in St. Cloud to make an announcement on the administration's "War on Fraud." U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., was also to have been in attendance, his office told St. Cloud LIVE.

Vance previously appeared in St. Cloud at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center with President Donald Trump for a campaign rally on July 27, 2024.

At the time, Vance was a first-term U.S. senator from Ohio, picked for Trump's running mate in the 2024 election. A massive crowd — some of whom waited in line for more than 24 hours — braved 90-degree weather that day to see them.

The city of St. Cloud still has an unpaid bill for more than $200,000 issued to the Trump campaign for police, fire and public services for the event. Trump officials at the time said the Secret Service was responsible for the bill, but representatives for the agency said there is no mechanism to reimburse state and local governments for services provided at such events.

The Trump-Vance campaign message at the time was heavily focused on illegal immigration.

"I have a very simple message to millions of illegal aliens in this country: If you're here, start packing your bags right now because Donald J. Trump is going to be the next president," Vance told the crowd, estimated between 6,000 and 8,000 people, with another 10,000 estimated outside.

"In six months, we’re going to launch the largest deportation program in the history of this country. We’re going to end catch and release, we’re going to ban sanctuary cities," he said.

Operation Metro Surge launched in December 2025; a month later, Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed by federal agents, igniting protests around the state, including in St. Cloud.

Vance visited Minneapolis in January in an attempt to calm tensions following Good's shooting and the detainment of children by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. That visit came two days before Pretti was shot.

The vice president was also a central figure in the administration's decision to halt Medicaid funding to Minnesota earlier this year amid concerns about the theft of funds intended for social welfare programs.