Four of the Minneapolis mayoral candidates went head-to-head in a debate hosted by WCCO’s Frank Vascellaro on Tuesday night.
This was one of several and the final debate for the candidates ahead of the election on Nov. 4.
The debate was livestreamed (INSERT LINK HERE) and included the top four candidates for Minneapolis mayor:
- Incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey
- State Sen. Omar Fateh
- Rev. DeWayne Davis
- Jazz Hampton
Gun control
One of the hot topic issues of the evening was gun control.
After the mass shooting at Annunciation this summer both Frey and Fateh called for better gun control with Fateh calling on Gov. Walz to convene a special legislative session on the issue.
During the debate Tuesday night, all four candidates reiterated the need for better gun control measures.
“This is an issue that we can all agree upon,” said Fateh.
The candidates were asked about a gun control ordinance for Minneapolis. A current Minnesota statute states that a city cannot make their own law over gun control. All four candidates expressed the desire to get an ordinance for the city, if preemption is no longer a hurdle.
“Preemption law means that cities cannot change city ordinance. But once that “big law” is gone you can put it it [city ordinance] into the books to snap it into place immediately,” said Hampton. “So we have to put those ordinances on the books today and once they’re there we can turn to our partners in the legislature and say ‘it’s already on the books, we won’t even argue with what we need to do. All you need to do is remove preemption.”
“Here’s the thing, we can pass laws, even with state preemption, we can put on the books banning assault weapons, registering guns and banning assault weapons, registering guns and banning high capacity clips,” said Davis.
“We need to ban fully automatic weapons at the state and federal level. And ban high capacity magazines at the state and federal level. and if the state and the feds are unwilling or unable then give us the ability to do it in cities,” said Frey.
“Coming up with solutions at the city level so that things can click once we pass our ordinances, we can get it right at the state, we can make it happen,” said Fateh.
Homelessness
Another point of contention has been the topic of people experiencing homelessness within the city.
All four candidates emphasized a need for a better response team and resources to help those experiencing homelessness..
“We should have a homeless response team and an outreach [team. So that] a homeless encampment won’t form in the first place,” said Davis during the debate. “What are we doing to make sure that when one person sets up in a space that we have the outreach, that we have the intention, that we are moving them away before an encampment takes place.”
“Nobody wants encampments it’s not fair. But unlike [the] mayor I want to clear encampments by housing people,” said Fateh. “Bulldozing them block by block is not a solution. Bulldozing our neighbors does not house them and it only allows for another encampment to prop up.”
The recent legal battle between Hamoudi Sabri and the city over homeless encampments on Sabri’s property was brought up during the debate Tuesday.
“The encampment that you [Vascellaro] mentioned, the Sabri encampment, that individual is now bankrolling Sen. Omar Fateh’s PAC,” said Frey.
“It’s unfortunate that we had a situation in which a private citizen, Sabri as mentioned, addressed the situation. It shouldn’t be that way,” said Fateh.
Over the summer, Sabri turned his property into an encampment for people experiencing homelessness — this led to a monthslong legal battle with the city claiming the cite was a “public nuisance.” A judge granted Minneapolis’ temporary restraining order against Sabri, barring him from allowing homeless encampments on any of his properties until further order from the court. Sabri has since
In mid-September, seven people were shot at the encampment and one of them died.
Downtown
A topic of interest has been the revitalization of downtown Minneapolis. Downtown has been struggling since the COVID-19 pandemic and in Oct. 2024, Frey announced his Downtown Action Plan in an effort to draw more back to the area.
During the debate the candidates shared how they would draw people back to the area.
Hampton used his personal experience when discussing the topic, citing the area no longer was “walkable” and the need to draw more people to live in and near downtown. He also stated the need to work with small and large businesses to ensure they “are not leaving and feel safe and secure in the city.”
“The downtown is still full opportunity and potential,” said Fateh. “I want to ensure that we’re filling our storefronts with local small businesses. Ensuring that we are removing barriers for folks to start a business, that’s why I want to have a strong office of small business support, that can provide start up grants for businesses.”
More on the candidates
Earlier this summer, Fateh won the city DFL’s endorsement in an upset. However it was pulled following a complaint by Frey, with whom the state DFL eventually sided.
The compliant from Frey’s campaign alleges that the state DFL’s investigation found nearly 200 votes missing and called the process “flawed.” They claim an “extraordinarily high number of missing or uncounted votes produced by the highly flawed and untested electronic voting system.” The campaign also alleged there’s “no plausible reason” why over 20% of the total delegates and alternates would skip voting.
Gov. Tim Walz endorsed Frey for a third term. In a statement earlier this summer Walz said Frey “is a partner I can trust to actually deliver progressive policies that improve people’s lives.”
Tune in for special live coverage of all races and results on election night on Nov. 4. Polls in Minnesota close at 8 p.m.
WCCO News will provide live results online from every race in the state, including dozens of school referendums as voters decide if taxes should be raised to pay for improvements and education programs.
Results will also appear as soon as they come in on CBS News Minnesota, and key races will be shown at the bottom of the screen on WCCO-TV later in the evening.
For more information on finding your local polling place, check the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website.
If you or someone you know needs help finding affordable housing-related options, get help from the HousingLink. Additional programs can be found at Housing Benefits 101.
Chloe Rosen
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