Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/category/elections/page/28/)
Hmong Pages: There has been some controversy about having two Hmong candidates in the race. It seems that other communities do not have the same controversy. What do you think is the reason for that difference?
All of the drama with our mayoral and city council races have left the candidates vying for a seat as a Park Board commissioner out of the spotlight. And while the fifth district (a portion of Howe and all of Hiawatha) is an uncontested race, the third district (part of Howe, and all of Cooper, Longfellow, and Seward) will see two names on the ballot – incumbent Scott Vreeland and newcomer Said Maye.Park Board commissioners are elected every four years and are responsible for developing park policies and enacting ordinances that affect more than 6,740 acres of land and water, including parks, beaches, lakes, pools, and rec centers.We’ve invited both Vreeland and Maye to participate in a Q&A discussing issues they see Minneapolis’ parks facing in the coming years and goals they would like to see the Board achieve. Incumbent Vreeland’s responses are below. We will publish Maye’s responses when we receive them.This article is reposted from TCDP media partner My Broadsheet. Check out the links below for other recent My Broadsheet stories:Subscriptions Open for Community Solar GardenUpdate: True ThaiScott Vreeland Q&AQuestionsWhat do you see as the top three issues that Minneapolis parks face in the coming years? Continue Reading
Minneapolis voters will be using the still-new system of “Ranked Choice Voting” when they go to the polls Election Day, Tuesday, November 5. Using specially-designed ballots, Ranked Choice Voting allows voters to vote for their first choice, second choice and third choice for city offices.
St. Paul school board candidates discussed the achievement gap between white students and students of color at the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center on October 17. According to the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs), the current proficiency rate among all students in the St. Paul school district is 44 percent in math and 37 percent in reading. Proficiency rates among white students in math and reading are 71 percent in both categories, while the rates among black students are 26 percent proficiency in math and 25 percent proficiency in reading. Continue Reading
Hashim Yonis, a candidate for Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board commissioner and a former Park District employee, was accused in July of illegally taking money. In August, he was terminated for violation of a number of civil service rules, including “criminal or dishonest conduct unbecoming to a public employee” and “misappropriation of City property, funds or money.” [See PDF below for full investigative report and decisions.] In a settlement agreement announced today, Yonis agreed never to apply for a position with the Park Board. In the agreement, he was allowed to turn his termination into a resignation. Here’s the text of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board statement:
Tuesday, Nov. 5, is Election Day. Voters in Falcon Heights and Lauderdale will cast their ballots on a levy referendum for Roseville Area Schools and will choose between four candidates to fill three seats on the Roseville School Board. Falcon Heights voters will also be asked to choose between three candidates vying for two at-large seats on the Falcon Heights City Council. St. Paul voters have four candidates to choose from for the mayor’s seat and five candidates running to fill three seats on the St. Paul Public Schools Board of Education. Meet the candidates here.
Tuesday, Nov. 5, is Election Day. Voters in Falcon Heights and Lauderdale will cast their ballots on a levy referendum for Roseville Area Schools and will choose between four candidates to fill three seats on the Roseville School Board. Falcon Heights voters will also be asked to choose between three candidates vying for two at-large seats on the Falcon Heights City Council. St. Paul voters have four candidates to choose from for the mayor’s seat and five candidates running to fill three seats on the St. Paul Public Schools Board of Education. Meet the candidates here.
Voter-registration outreach efforts directed at often-disenfranchised communities, including the homeless, are not unusual, but this year there’s a new twist: explaining ranked-choice voting.“You pick your top three choices. You use all three. That’s really the main thing people have to know,’’ advised John Knowland recently from his perch behind a voter registration table at Catholic Charities Opportunity Center, a drop-in center for the homeless at 17th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis.With pre-voter registration finished, over the next weeks until Election Day on Nov. 5 there will be workshops and Q-and-A sessions on ranked-choice voting, Minneapolis’ new take on electing a mayor and members to the City Council, Park Board and the Board of Estimate and Taxation.But for many it seems more complicated than that. The ballot looks different for one thing, and why should they vote for all three anyway? Continue Reading
Thank you to everyone who made it out to Saturday’s Ward 12 City Council candidate forum! Four out of the five candidates running for the Ward 12 seat were in attendance, and the conference room we had at the Midtown YWCA was standing room only.
Tuesday night at 7:30pm, candidates for Minneapolis mayor will answer questions about the challenges of the future in Minnesota’s largest city. The discussion will include the problems and opportunities presented by the city’s changing demographics, efforts to close income and education achievement gaps, political leadership, police-community relations and the effects of Ranked Choice Voting on the election. The discussion will be led by Prof. Nekima Levy-Pounds, a University of St. Thomas law professor whose specialties include Civil Rights and the community. Continue Reading