A pastor, a hotel cook, a civil rights attorney, a state senator and the owner of a respite care facility who used to be homeless are among the candidates running alongside Mayor Jacob Frey to be Minneapolis’ next mayor.
Most are running to the political left of Frey, contending that he hasn’t done enough to support immigrants, end homelessness and reform the Minneapolis Police Department.
State Sen. Omar Fateh, DFL-Minneapolis, believes the city should increase public services by increasing its tax base through adding density to the housing supply. He also wants to add a property tax burden on landowners and a local option income tax to tax the wealthier at higher rates.
DeWayne Davis, a pastor, argues that the city should do more to protect immigrants by connecting them with free legal services. Jazz Hampton, an attorney, says the city’s homelessness response team must be beefed up to include more responders. Brenda Short, a south Minneapolis resident, says that she would lie to the federal government about the city’s immigration policies to keep federal funding in Minneapolis.
Kevin Dwire, a hotel cook and union member, says the only way forward is for the working class to overthrow the capitalist system.
Frey counters criticism from his opponents by pointing to the city’s current role in a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s promised funding cuts to sanctuary cities. He also cited the city’s declining homeless rate, according to city data, and his support of Minneapolis police reforms as signs of progress under his watch.
Sahan Journal recently spoke with the six mayoral candidates about how they would approach immigration, homelessness and police reform.
All of the candidates aside from Dwire, a member of the Socialist Workers Party, are seeking endorsement from the Democratic Farmer-Labor Party at the Minneapolis City DFL Convention on July 19.
The DFL primary election is Tuesday, August 12, followed by the general election on Tuesday, November 4.
