EXCLUSIVE: The highest-ranking Minnesotan in Congress is calling for a deeper investigation into allegations that leaders in his state government knowingly ignored evidence of welfare fraud, and he called for those leaders to even face incarceration if proven true.

"People are sick and tired of elected officials having a double standard, being treated differently than they are. They're held accountable for things that they should be held accountable for, when their elected officials are not," House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., told Fox News Digital. 

"If these two guys are dirty, they should be held accountable, and they should serve jail time."

He was referring to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison, two of several witnesses at a high-profile hearing on fraud conducted by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.

GREGG JARRETT: IF WALZ IS CHARGED IN MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL, HIS BEST DEFENSE IS INCOMPETENCE

Both Walz and Ellison insisted that they were serious about prosecuting fraud in the state's social programs and that they took action to stop it once it was brought to their attention.

But Emmer cited a report by the House Oversight Committee that accused them both of knowing about the fraud earlier than previously thought and delaying public accountability for fear of political retribution from progressives in the state — particularly the Somali community in Minneapolis, who Republicans have accused of taking advantage of the state's welfare system.

"They might have been able to qualify it enough that it wasn't black and white, but if they lied to the committee this morning about knowing about the fraud and when they knew about the fraud and the FBI investigation, that is a criminal act of its own," Emmer told Fox News Digital.

SCATHING AUDIT REVEALS MORE FRAUD CONCERNS INSIDE TOP MINNESOTA AGENCY WITH FABRICATED DOCUMENTS, 'MISCONDUCT'

"So I do believe, depending on this report and what else the majority staff is doing, they very well may want to call them back in and depose them under oath."

He added at another point, "You have maybe 80 to 100,000 Somalis in Minnesota. Tim Walz won with 52%. They made a difference. Keith Ellison won by less than 1%. I think it was 20,000 votes. Makes a difference. So if those are connected, yeah, I mean, this is campaign fraud."

"I've taken accountability for this. I'm not going to run again. I need to spend the time fixing this," Walz said during the hearing. "This does undermine trust in government. Do I wish there were things that could have happened earlier? Yes. But in this job, ‘wish’ didn't do it. I'm looking into where I see it."

CONVICTED MINNESOTA FRAUDSTER ALLEGES WALZ, ELLISON WERE AWARE OF WIDESPREAD FRAUD

At another point, Walz attributed the rise in fraud statistics to an increase in prosecutions, telling Republicans, "When you catch people and prosecute them, it shows up as a fraud increase."

He also dismissed accusations that he kept whistle-blowers quiet over fear of being seen as Islamophobic, "I can't speak to it because it's not anything I would say."

Ellison, meanwhile, said he was happy to work across bipartisan lines to prosecute fraud.

"I am here to work to improve this system, and there are improvements that can be made," he said. "If we can get out of fixing the blame and get to fixing the problem, that would be an enormous thing for me."

But Emmer, who maintained that further investigation was needed, suggested he doubted their intentions.

"It's power. They want power. In order for them to get power, they need to be elected. In order for them to get elected, they have to cheat in different ways. And that is exactly what they did," Emmer said. "If the Somali community is being used by these public officials to get themselves into office…it sure does look suspect, it needs to be investigated."

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signaled he may be willing to grant clemency to a pro-Trump election worker who was thrown in jail for a 2020 scheme attempting to find proof of election fraud.

President Donald Trump has been pressuring Polis to release Tina Peters, 70, since he returned to office last year. Polis acknowledged that Peters' sentence was "harsh," given that she had no prior criminal record.

Polis admitted on social media this week that Peters was sentenced to 9 years in prison while a former state lawmaker convicted of the same crime was sentenced only to probation and community service.

"Justice in Colorado and America needs to be applied evenly, you never know when you might need to depend on the rule of law. This is the context I am using as I consider cases like this that have sentencing disparities," Polis wrote on X.

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The Democratic governor said earlier this week that it would impact his decision if Peters expressed remorse for her actions in 2020, which she so far has not.

"What she would have to show in any successful clemency application would be appropriate contrition, apology. That’s the kind of thing I would be looking for," he told KUSA-TV.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, whose office helped prosecute Peters, pushed back on Polis' comments and emphasized that Peters has not demonstrated any remorse for her actions.

PRO-TRUMP CLERK CONVICTED IN 2020 ELECTION SCHEME THREATENED, ATTACKED IN PRISON, LAWYER SAYS

"Clemency should be based on remorse, rehabilitation, and extenuating circumstances — not on political influence, favor, or retribution," Weiser, a Democrat who is running to succeed the term-limited Polis, said.

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, who is also hoping to replace Polis as governor, also said Peters shouldn't be pardoned or have her sentence commuted.

"Donald Trump may be seeking revenge on Colorado, but surrendering to his political pressure will not make our state stronger or safer," the Democrat said.

Trump has posted on social media about Peters' case multiple times, describing her as a "patriot."

"Instead of protecting Americans and their Tax Dollars, Democrats chose instead to prosecute anyone they can find that wanted Safe and Secure Elections," Trump posted last year. "Democrats have been relentless in their targeting of TINA PETERS, a Patriot who simply wanted to make sure that our Elections were Fair and Honest."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.