Category: decision 2017

This post comes a little late! But I’ve been busy volunteering for a candidate (you should be too!) Election day is Tuesday. This is your abbreviated Wedge LIVE! Voter Guide for competitive city council races in Minneapolis. (For a non-partisan voter guide please see our sister publication, MSP Votes.)

Ward 1 Endorsement: Jillia Pessenda

Pessenda is the credible challenger from the left. Got lots of endorsements, to the point I assumed at one point months ago that Kevin Reich was toast. Pessenda had more delegates than incumbent Reich at the Ward 1 convention. Pessenda believes Minneapolis needs more housing, and has said things that make me think she’s a real ally on zoning reform. Thinks that actually implementing the city’s Complete Streets policy will serve to reconnect Ward 1 to the rest of the city. Pessenda looks to be dependable ally for the Bender/Gordon wing of the city council when it comes to transportation, housing, police reform, and many other issues.

Kevin Reich is a strongly pro-Barb Johnson (Ward 4) incumbent. Will vote with Team Barb on close votes. Has weird habit of using words like “grievable.” Reich doesn’t like it when you point out he voted for Vikings stadium subsidy. Barb sends him campaign donations from her own campaign account.

John Hayden is the fiscally conservative, anti-Vikings stadium crusader in Ward 1. I’d rank him ahead of Reich but that’s because I sometimes enjoy him on Twitter.

Ward 3 Endorsement: Steve Fletcher

Fletcher is good. If you want an ideological model, he roughly fits with Lisa Bender. That means police reform, workplace protections, more housing, good on the environment and transportation (if you’re a fan of walking, biking, bussing). I was very impressed with his Q&A session at the Ward 3 DFL Convention and his performance at candidate forums. Read my longer endorsement of Fletcher here.

You may be wondering why not Socialist Ginger Jentzen? I’ll just say I think her housing platform is unworkable and hugely counterproductive.

Samantha Pree-Stinson is the Green Party candidate in Ward 3.

Definitely do not rank Tim Bildsoe, who is an actual Republican.

Ward 4 Endorsement: Philippe Cunningham

I like Philippe Cunningham’s policy experience in the mayor’s office. Go with him. But certainly rank Stephanie Gasca too.

Incumbent Barb Johnson is just relentlessly terrible. She thinks garage apartments cause prostitution. She spends campaign money on her cable TV, internet, and phone bills. She’s by far the most law-and-order, police-can-do-no-wrong politician in Minneapolis. Which I believe to be a bad thing. We all need to be done with Barb. We need Ward 4 to get it done.

Ward 5 Endorsement: Jeremiah Ellison

Ellison is DFL-endorsed which is an impressive thing to have done against an incumbent (nobody else did it this year). Ellison is an artist, which could be a red flag. But many people tell me he is incredibly smart. I saw him in person at a candidate forum, and that checks out. Politically gifted, which makes sense considering his dad is Keith Ellison. From a distance, I say he’s running an impressive campaign (which is a definite skill to be measured, considering all the candidates out there phoning it in).

Ideologically speaking, Ellison lines up as an ally of the Bender/Gordon wing of the council, so if you like the sound of that, you should love Ellison. I’m optimistic and prepared to love him.

Blong Yang is a close Barb ally, who looks feeble to me, politically speaking. He doesn’t show up to forums. Doesn’t answer candidate questionnaires. He lost the DFL endorsement. Yet still some people tell me he’s on track to win. This makes me less confident in my prediction that Blong is toast. Still, I don’t buy it. Blong Yang gives the appearance of a candidate who is running scared.

One essential Blong Yang story: as chair of the Public Safety committee during the Jamar Clark protests, Yang engaged in a weird procedural move to allow racist police union president Bob Kroll to speak, while excluding dissenting views from the hearing.

Raeisha Williams is also running in Ward 5. I’d rank her ahead of Yang.

Ward 6 Endorsement: Mohamud Noor

I have no reason to believe Mohamud Noor is a great candidate. I didn’t look very hard. Maybe he’s great. I do know he’s become the chosen candidate of Minneapolis progressives (Ilhan Omar, Ray Dehn, other state senators and representatives,  Mayor Hodges, and others) who think Abdi Warsame is a dick. And Abdi Warsame legitimately seems like a dick, so that’s good enough for me. Vote Noor.

Ward 7 Endorsement: Janne Flisrand

Janne is a friend of mine. But you should still believe me when I tell you, Janne is amazing. She has run a truly impressive campaign. One of the smartest, hardest working people I’ve ever met. Has a genuine talent for bringing people together to accomplish big things. She has all the skills you’d want in a leader. Read my full endorsement of Janne here.

Lisa Goodman has a well-earned reputation for favoring her wealthiest constituents and big business. She was hostile to action on the minimum wage and workplace protections in the last council term. Goodman is a Barb Johnson ally, and is an opponent of police reform. Lots of people are afraid of Lisa Goodman, feel bullied by Lisa Goodman, and are ready to see Lisa Goodman go away.

Ward 9 Endorsement: Wedge LIVE is not getting involved in Ward 9.

Your choice is between incumbent Alondra Cano and “guy who was the Ward 9 incumbent four years ago” Gary Schiff. I refuse to help you decide! Just don’t vote for Mohamed Farah, the GOP-funded. Minneapolis Works! candidate.

Ward 10 Endorsement: Lisa Bender

Obviously, we’re bringing Lisa Bender back for another four years. She’s smart, she’s committed to doing the right thing for the most people, regardless of power dynamics or the political cost to herself. I really admire Lisa Bender. Read my full endorsement of Lisa Bender here.

The other candidates in Ward 10 turned out much weirder than I could have imagined in 2017. Saralyn Romanishan, the person who runs the zany NIMBY Facebook page decided to run. She compares city government to Hitler and genocide, among other atrocities. She once called an equity plan put forward by the city a “pogrom.” Though in her defense, I’ve often questioned whether Saralyn knows what words mean. (Read a selection of Saralyn’s horrific commentary over the years.)

I served with Saralyn on the Lowry Hill East neighborhood board. She didn’t even get along with people who agreed with her. She took on a lot of responsibility and was incompetent at most of it.

Here’s the really beyond the pale disqualifying stuff: a friend of Saralyn’s once threatened my girlfriend with an anonymous email; this person put my girlfriend’s name, description, and location in a Craigslist ad, inviting strangers to come visit her. How have I determined the source of this anonymous threat? Because Saralyn’s friend was stupid enough to reference, within the anonymous email, the particular private disagreement I’d had with Saralyn just days before.

My message to you: don’t support terrible people with stupid, malicious friends. Don’t rank Saralyn on your ballot.

David Schorn is another candidate of questionable quality. He shares Saralyn’s anti-everything ideology without the maliciousness. Though he did show up to a protest where people held signs comparing bikers to Nazis. If you want to rank your ballot defensively to avoid Saralyn, I’d put Schorn second.

There’s a third challenger in Ward 10 who is a Republican who has said many jaw-droppingly racist things at candidate forums, and I’d rank him ahead of Saralyn too. Which I feel like I could defend morally, if I took the time to write four or five more paragraphs.

Ward 11 Endorsement: Erica Mauter

I really like Erica Mauter for a few reasons and you can read that full endorsement here.

Jeremy Schroeder is also great. With enthusiasm I say rank him second.

The group had raised $12,000 at the end of August. Funding was provided by the Downtown Council ($1,000); Steve Cramer, President and CEO of the Downtown Council ($500); developer Steve Minn ($5,000) and wife Lucille Minn ($5,000); and Jonathan Weinhagen, the President and CEO of the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce ($500). Based on the large volume of advertising from Minneapolis Works in the last half of October, future finance reports will show a much larger fundraising haul.

[Update 10/21: We now know this group is soliciting corporate checks through an alliance with a right-wing PAC called the Minnesota Jobs Coalition.]

Blong Yang; Barb Johnson; Lisa Goodman

Wards 4 and 5 in Minneapolis are composed of 14 North Side neighborhoods where people of color are the majority. By a wide margin, these wards have the lowest turnout in Minneapolis municipal elections. These wards have also produced two of the most conservative members of the Minneapolis City Council, Barb Johnson and Blong Yang.

Voter turnout in Minneapolis (2013)

One way to boost turnout would be to let people know there’s an election going on and how they can participate. Early voting is happening right now. Election day is less than a month away on November 7. Fortunately, the City of Minneapolis produces and mails a voter guide with some essential voter information. This guide contains basic info, like:

• date of the election
• times polls are open
• how to locate your polling place
• how to access a sample ballot
• voter eligibility requirements
• Minnesota voter bill of rights
• how to mark a ranked choice ballot

Last Wednesday, Minneapolis City Clerk Casey Carl told the City Council’s Elections Committee that his team gets “more compliments and positive feedback on [the voter guide] than anything else we do.”

But Council President Barb Johnson, who benefits from the fact that so many people of color in Ward 4 don’t vote, responded to the City Clerk’s presentation with this: “I’m glad you got a lot of positives about the voter guide, but I got a lot of negatives.”

Barb continued, “Why are we mailing to every house? And what does that cost? Can you give me a price tag about that? Because, as I say, I got a lot of negative feedback.”

Barb didn’t mention specific details about the negative feedback, or who she’s hearing it from.

The 2013 voter guide produced by the city was “identified in surveys as the single most effect voter outreach tool.” It cost $97,000 to send to every household in Minneapolis.

I’m not sure how Blong Yang feels about voter guides in low-turnout Ward 5, but he’s campaigning in a way that makes me think he needs one mailed to his house, because it’s not clear he understands there’s an election happening right now.

One important thing to remember about Blong Yang is he didn’t begin his term on the Council in a position of strength; he received only 42 percent of first-choice votes in 2013. This election year, instead of trying to expand his coalition, Yang’s strategy has been to run and hide. Naomi Kritzer explains the problem with Blong Yang in 2017:

He didn’t get endorsed at the DFL Ward Convention and has been campaigning in what I can only describe as a completely halfhearted way. He has not shown up for many (any?) of the debate/forum type events. He hasn’t filled out any questionnaires. His events (which you can find on his campaign Facebook page) are few in number and the campaign Facebook page is mostly just announcements of these events. On that grounds alone, I would not vote for him. If someone doesn’t want to be accountable to their constituents during the campaign they certainly aren’t going to be accountable to you after they take office.

Ward 7 features another conservative incumbent, Lisa Goodman, who’s been dodging debates and refusing to answer candidate questionnaires. Now, you might remember that when Goodman finally showed up for a candidate forum a few weeks ago it became an international scandal, as first reported by Wedge LIVE (no joke: Lisa Goodman’s public performance really was horrific enough that it showed up in a UK tabloid).

Ward 7 incumbent Lisa Goodman is hiding from the election.

Goodman has skipped two other recent candidate forums, including one hosted by the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce. She has refused to answer questionnaires on housing, transportation, racial justice, and other topics. Goodman did find a way to attend a forum sponsored by the five “lakes area” neighborhood organizations, featuring an audience question that instructed candidates to “restrict their answers to only the five lakes-area neighborhoods” (which tells you a lot about Ward 7 political dynamics).

The overall turnout numbers in Ward 7 are fairly average by Minneapolis standards. But there’s a wide disparity between the high-turnout “lakes area” neighborhoods (40-50%) and low-turnout downtown neighborhoods (15-30%). Lisa Goodman, facing a serious challenger for the first time since she was first elected in 1997, has a base of support that’s made up of those high turnout areas around the lakes.

At the City Council’s Elections Committee hearing where the city’s voter guide was discussed, a very conscientious-sounding Lisa Goodman said she feels “weird” and “awkward” using “city resources” (her e-newsletter) to promote basic info about the election.

But I don’t think an elected official telling people where and when they can vote is all that weird or awkward. What’s really weird and extremely awkward is Lisa Goodman using city resources to promote herself with a six-page color newsletter, printed and mailed to constituents just before the election. According to Ward 7 residents, this newsletter is not something they usually receive.

Goodman also sent 6 page color gatefold newsletter printed, mailed at city expense. Never seen such fanciness in 5+ years in W7.

— Resolve.Action.Love (@Snowman55403) September 30, 2017

Received my Ward 7 newsletter yesterday. Every four years like clockwork! pic.twitter.com/dQCqwKlIvV

— Conquistador Jones (@devomase) September 26, 2017

Lisa Goodman mailed Mother of All Franked pieces 6 wks b4 election. She send 4-color pieces other times? City return address; taxpayer dime. pic.twitter.com/6rdVknr4VF

— David Brauer (@dbrauer) September 27, 2017

So you should vote this year. A good rule of thumb is to vote against the people who are running away from this election, afraid that more people might vote.

PLS VOTE!

We’re going to try to track Minneapolis candidate forums and other key election-related dates on this calendar. You’ll also see a sidebar calendar on the desktop version of the site. I’m asking readers and campaigns to help track down anything we’ve missed: contact us via Twitter or send an email to newsroom@wedgelive.com.

Lots of big news swirling around the race for Minneapolis Mayor.

Carol Becker sues Mayor Hodges. Becker, a member of the Board of Estimate and Taxation, says the budget document the Mayor delivered is insufficient and violates the city’s charter. The mayor says she has complied with the charter and will deliver a more robust budget presentation in September.

After routine order from the judge, Carol Becker declares premature victory. The Star Tribune frames the story in misleading way, giving impression judge is siding with Carol Becker on the merits.

Keep in mind, I am arguably less qualified than Carol Becker to dole out legal opinions. But here’s one reason why I’m dubious about this lawsuit: Her complaint quotes language that no longer exists in the city charter; the since-deleted section she cites dates to the Rybak-era (which happens to be the last time she made a similar stink over the budget).

The Saga of Hollywood Hodges. It has emerged that Mayor Hodges, in the heat of a re-election campaign, took a trip to Los Angeles for a fundraiser during the week after Justine Damond was killed by a Minneapolis cop.

Jacob Frey wants you to know the Hodges fundraiser happened at a fancy-sounding place called the “Wilshire Country Club.”

Jon Tevlin of the Star Tribune wants you to know guests at the fundraiser were served “kale wraps” and “locally sourced tofu.”

Mayor Hodges says this story is just now emerging because it was “shopped” to reporters by her better-funded opponents.

As you might imagine, Jacob Frey and Tom Hoch are sitting on enormous piles of cash received from fancy people at fancy fundraisers. I look forward to reading Jon Tevlin’s future love letters to mayoral candidate Raymond Dehn, who is so admirably bad at raising money that he was outraised by a socialist city council candidate.

Jon Tevlin

In the third major scandal to rock the Hodges campaign in less than a week, the mayor was caught doing a dance called the “wobble.” Jon Tevlin of the Star Tribune shows restraint by not turning this into one of his cracks about “rehab.“

The Star Tribune wonders if Jacob Frey has fallen out of favor with the business community, to the benefit of Tom Hoch. The evidence is thin: Trumper LA Nik’s campaign treasurer used to be a Frey supporter; and Steve Minn likes to give anguished quotes about not feeling supported. Bottom line: not even the people who would love to elect Tom Hoch are able to take Tom Hoch’s campaign seriously.

Yes, Minneapolis’ most prominent Trump supporter, LA Nik is now pretending to run for mayor after months of pretending to run for city council.

Here are the results from recent Wedge LIVE polls of the Business Community and the Regular Community.

Upcoming mayoral forum: Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce, September 14.

Where possible, donors have been categorized (developer, restaurant, fire, police, etc). These categories are visible on candidate pages, and through the campaign finance link at the top of the screen. If you want to find a particular donor or organization, you can search the site via the 🔍 icon.

From the Jacob Frey page.

From the “Hafiz” page.

From the Minneapolis Downtown Council page.

Lobbyist profiles on MSP Votes link directly to lobbyist reports from the state of Minnesota.

Minnesota Campaign Finance Board website.

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• This database does not contain a comprehensive list of all donors. We used our own editorial judgment to select donors based on the following criteria: notable donors or employers; high-dollar donors; and repeat donors. 
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• Hennepin County needs to begin requiring reports to be filed and published in machine-readable format. This would make similar transparency projects much less laborious and far more comprehensive: more effort could be spent annotating data rather than entering it.
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