2 frontrunners in crowded field of Minneapolis mayoral candidates

Minneapolis mayoral electionThe mayors of both Minneapolis and St. Paul are up for election Tuesday.

There is a large field of candidates vying to be the next mayor of Minnesota’s largest city.

Officially, 15 candidates have filed for the office (party listed in parentheses, incumbent italicized):

DeWayne Davis (DFL),

Omar Fateh (DFL),

Jacob Frey (DFL),

Jazz Hampton (DFL),

Brenda Short (DFL),

Andrea Revel (For the People),

Alejandro Richardson (Independent),

Adam Terzich (Renaissance),

Laverne Turner (Independent),

Kevin Ward (Unaffiliated),

Jeffrey Alan Wagner (Why Not Wagner),

Troy A. Peterson (Momunist),

Charlie McCloud (Independent),

Xavier Pauke (Protecting Tomorrow’s Dreams), and

Kevin Dwire (Socialist Workers Party).

Four of them — Davis, Fateh, Frey and Hampton — have participated in multiple debates in recent weeks.

RELATED: Minneapolis mayoral debate: 4 candidates square off on encampments, rent control, Roof Depot

While Minneapolis elections are officially nonpartisan, the city charter allows candidates to align themselves with a party, which is shown under their name on the ballot. Each of the four above is running as a Democrat, although none holds the party endorsement because of the drama over the summer.

RELATED: DFL vacates Fateh’s endorsement for Minneapolis mayor, citing ‘substantial failures’ in process

It’s important to note that Minneapolis uses ranked choice voting, which allows voters to select their top three candidates on the ballot. Read about how it works at the link below.

RELATED: Ranked choice voting: How it works, which cities use it

Frey has served as Minneapolis mayor since 2018. The only other candidate with major political experience is Fateh, a state senator representing District 62 since 2021.

Fateh, Davis and Hampton have been united in their bid to unseat Frey and are viewed as the incumbent’s biggest challengers. However, their differing views may cause voters to lose their “rank all three” message.

To see a Minneapolis sample ballot (other races will vary by ward), click here, or see your ballot online.

Mpls sample ballotDownload

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