Minneapolis mayor’s race goes into runoff as no winner emerges in first round
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The race for Minneapolis mayor did not conclude Tuesday night. With nearly 100 percent of precincts reporting, no candidate reached the threshold needed to be declared the winner after first choice ballots were tallied.
Mayor Jacob Frey received nearly 42 percent of first choice votes. His closest challenger, state Sen. Omar Fateh, received nearly 32 percent. Minister DeWayne Davis and business owner Jazz Hampton are farther behind with 14 percent and 10 percent respectively.
City officials say tabulation will continue at 9 a.m. Wednesday and into Thursday if necessary.
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Frey told supporters last night that he’s optimistic about his numbers. He says the strong turnout shows that Minneapolis is coming back.
”We have gone through the most difficult of moments," he said. "We have come through adversity together. We have tackled the most difficult of circumstances. We've done it hand in hand, facing the world. And Minneapolis is rising, and every one of us, we are going to rise along with it.”
Omar Fateh told his supporters that they’ve waited eight years for new leadership, and now need to wait just one more day for all votes to be counted.
”We stand proud because this campaign has already changed the conversation from what Minneapolis can be,” he said. “Minneapolis is a city with resilience. A city with so much courage. A city that takes care of our own. So let’s build the city that our kids deserve, and let’s build the city that we’ve always believed in.”
Turnout was strong for this municipal election. Two hours before the polls closed Tuesday, city officials estimated more than 116,000 voters cast ballots either early or on Election Day.
The record for turnout during a municipal election is 145,337, set during the 2021 election.
Minneapolis uses a ranked-choice voting system in which candidates with fewer votes are eliminated and their supporters’ votes are reallocated to their next choice.
Fifteen people competed for the mayor’s seat — though not all of them campaigned actively or fundraised for the position.
MPR News reporter Cari Spencer contributed to this story.
