Minneapolis Mayoral Election Vote Counting Ongoing

In Minneapolis, the counting of votes continues in the ranked mayoral election since no candidate secured over 50% of the votes in the first round.

“Folks, this city really showed up again. I think we had nearly record turnout. It looks very good for us,” said incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey (D), who is aiming for a third term. He is competing against over a dozen other candidates, with voters allowed to rank their top three choices.

Frey currently holds a 10-point lead, surpassing state Senator Omar Fateh (D), who is seen as a strong contender. Frey garnered around 61,000 votes, which represents about 42% of the total, falling short of what he needs for an outright win.

The election will head into a second round of vote counting. The candidate with the fewest votes in each round will be eliminated, and their ballots will be reassigned to the next preferred candidate on those ballots. This elimination process will continue until one candidate secures a majority.

Since 2013, there has always been at least a second round in the Minneapolis mayoral race, with Frey winning after six rounds in 2017 and two rounds in 2021.

Fateh, a Muslim Somali-American and progressive Democrat, was initially endorsed by the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. However, just weeks later, that endorsement was retracted due to issues in the voting process at the convention.

Fateh has received support from Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota), who expressed enthusiasm about backing his campaign. “Minneapolis feels like a tale of two cities: one for the affluent and another for everyone else,” he stated.

Both Gov. Tim Walz (D) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D) have endorsed Frey. While there remains a possibility for Fateh to surpass Frey, the current mayor has a substantial lead.

On election night, Frey commented, “This city has re-emerged. We’ve had what I believe is near-record turnout. It’s looking quite good for us.”