Star Tribune Editorial Board Endorses Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey For 2nd Term

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The Star Tribune's Editorial Board on Saturday endorsed Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for another term, telling voters in Minnesota's largest city that it "strongly recommends" the mayor be re-elected, particularly over public safety concerns.

"Minneapolis needs a mayor who will make public safety and police reform coequal priorities," the board wrote. "That means protecting residents, workers and visitors from both criminals and bad cops..."

The board, which is separate from the paper's newsroom, praised the mayor's resilience in refusing to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, even as he faced harsh criticism from activists and members of the city council.

"Minneapolis will follow one of two paths," the editorial board wrote. "It can let itself be guided toward prudent reforms by traditional progressive values, or it can go in reckless pursuit of radical visions detached from reality."

Still, the board criticized Frey for failing to realize the crisis that would come from the bystander video of Floyd's murder, which sparked days of protest and nights of unrest in the Twin Cities. When the smoke cleared, hundreds of buildings were damaged, ransacked or burned.

In response to the endorsement, Frey released a statement, saying that Minneapolis voters know what's at stake this election, which is less than a month away.

"[A]n opportunity to fix what's broken about their local government, rebuild a city that reflects our values, and set aside empty slogans in favor of doing the hard work that real change requires," he said.

On Nov. 2, Minneapolis residents will not only vote for their mayor, but all 13 seats on the city council. Additionally, they'll vote on a number of questions, one of which is whether or not to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a Department of Public Safety.

Frey and the paper's editorial board hold the same position on this question (ballot question No. 2): They do not want to replace the police department. Instead, they want to reform it with Chief Medaria Arradondo at the helm.

The mayor and the editorial board also hold the same positions on two other ballot questions. On question No. 1, they both want a strong-mayor system for city government. On question No. 3, they are both against proposed rent control powers for the city council.

Other candidates in the mayoral race include: Kate Knuth, a former DFL state legislator and Minneapolis resilience officer; Sheila Nezhad, a progressive activist; Clint Conner, a lawyer; and AJ Awed, a mediator.

The DFL did not endorse a candidate for mayor at its summer convention.