Minneapolis City Council Races: Unofficial Winners Declared In All Wards

MINNEAPOLS (WCCO) -- Unofficial winners have been declared for all 13 of Minneapolis' City Council seats.

Five council members were unseated, including Kevin Reich, Cam Gordon, Steve Fletcher, Phillipe Cunningham, and Jeremy Schroeder of wards 1, 2, 3, 4, and 11 respectively.

All but two of the incumbents sought re-election. Those stepping down were City Council President Lisa Bender (Ward 10) and Alondra Cano (Ward 9).

Three of the council members -- Kevin Reich (Ward 1), Linea Palmisano (Ward 13) and Lisa Goodman (Ward 7) -- did not pledge to defund the Minneapolis Police Department at a public meeting following the murder of George Floyd. Jamal Osman also did not attend the meeting, as he was not elected until a special election later. However, Osman supported replacing the police department with a Department of Public Safety.

The area below will be updated through Election Day with results from the ward races. Note: Ballot Question 2, which asked voters if they wanted to replace the Minneapolis Police Department, failed.

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UPDATE (2:05 p.m. Wednesday)

Michael Rainville has ousted incumbent representative Steve Fletcher in Ward 3, with 51.5% of the vote. Fletcher garnered 42.4% of the vote.

UPDATE (1:50 p.m. Wednesday)

Robin Wonsley Worlobah has been declared the unofficial winner in Ward 2, defeating incumbent Cam Gordon and challenger Yusra Arab.

Wonsley Worlobah said she is the first Black Democratic Socialist elected to Minneapolis City Council. She earned 42.6% of the vote, compared to Arab's 42.4%. Gordon was eliminated in the third round of tabulation.

In Ward 5, Jeremiah Ellison has been declared the unofficial winner with 38.6% of the vote. His challenger, Kristel Porter, had 36.9% of the vote.

Kevin Reich has been defeated in the race for Ward 1. He earned 45.4% of the vote, but it was not enough to defeat challenger Elliott Payne, who earned 50.2%.

In Ward 10, Aisha Chughtai appears to have won the seat vacated by City Council President Lisa Bender. Chughtai won 50.3% of the vote, while Alicia Gibson won 33.6%.

UPDATE (8:30 a.m. Wednesday)

Unofficial winners have been declared in eight Minneapolis City Council races.

• LaTrisha Vetaw in Ward 4
• Jamal Osman in Ward 6
• Lisa Goodman in Ward 7
• Andrea Jenkins in Ward 8
• Jason Chavez in Ward 9
• Emily Koski in Ward 11
• Andrew Johnson in Ward 12
• Linea Palmisano in Ward 13

All unofficial declarations are according to Hennepin County Elections & Voter Services.

Osman, Goodman, Jenkins, Johnson and Palmisano were all incumbent candidates. Vetaw unseated Phillipe Cunningham and Koski defeated incumbent Jeremy Schroeder. Alondra Cano, the incumbent Ward 9 councilmember, did not seek re-election.

In wards 1, 2, 3, 5 and 10, no candidate reached the required threshold in first-choice voting, so additional rounds will be tabulated beginning Wednesday morning. The wards will be tabulated in the following order: 2, 5, 10, 1 and 3.

In Ward 1, Elliott Payne led first round voting with 48% of the vote, while incumbent Kevin Reich earned 42%.

Ward 2 incumbent Cam Gordon trails two competitors in first-choice voting. Robin Wonsley Worlobah garnered 29% of the vote, with Yusra Arab close behind at 28%. Gordon earned 26%.

Ward 3 candidate Michael Rainville earned 45% of first choice votes, leading incumbent Steve Fletcher's 39%.

In Ward 5, incumbent Jeremiah Ellison gained nearly 32% of first-choice votes, while Victor Martinez and Kristel Porter each earned nearly 25%.

In Ward 10, where incumbent Lisa Bender did not seek re-election, Aisha Chughtai earned almost 37% of first-choice votes. Katie Jones and Alicia Gibson each got around 19%, and 15% of voters chose Chris Parsons.

UPDATE (10:32 p.m.)

With all of Minneapolis' precincts reporting, a number of city council races remain without clear winners. Among them are the races for Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward 3, Ward 5, and Ward 10. In at least three of the races, the incumbent candidates are in danger of being unseated.

In Ward 1, incumbent Kevin Reich won 43% of first-round votes, but was still trailing one of his challengers, Elliott Payne, who amassed over 48% of the vote. Candidates need to get just over 50% of votes in the first round in order to automatically win.

In Ward 2, incumbent Cam Gordon won 26% of first-round votes, but was still behind two of his challengers; Robin Wonsley Worlobah and Yusra Arab both earned about 29% of first-round votes.

In Ward 3, incumbent Steve Fletcher won 39% of first-round votes, but trailed competitor Michael Rainville, who earned about 45% of the vote.

In Ward 5, Jeremiah Ellison led first-round voting with 32% of the total. Yet, two challengers, Kristel Porter and Victor Martinez, both earned 25% of first-round votes.

In Ward 10, Aisha Chughtai was in the lead with 37% of first-round votes. Trailing her were candidates Katie Jones and Alicia Gibson, both of which earned about 20% of first-round votes. The incumbent candidate in Ward 10, Lisa Bender, did not seek re-election.

UPDATE (10:22 p.m.)

Jamal Osman appears to have won re-election in Ward 6, which is home to the city's largest East African community.

With all nine precincts reporting, Osman earned nearly 60% of first-round votes. His challenger, A. Bihi, amassed just under 40% of the vote.

Osman assumed office in 2020 following a special election.

UPDATE (10 p.m.)

Emily Koski looks to have upset incumbent Jeremy Schroeder in Ward 11, which encompasses an area of south Minneapolis near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

With all 10 precincts reporting, Koski had about 58% of first-round votes. Schroeder, on the other hand, garnered about 30% of first-round votes.

Schroeder appears to be the second city councilmember to be unseated Tuesday night.

Schroeder assumed office in 2018. He was one of a majority of city council members who pledged to defund the Minneapolis Police Department in the wake of George Floyd's murder.

UPDATE (9:39 p.m.)

Lisa Goodman has all but won re-election in Ward 7 in southwest Minneapolis.

With all 10 precincts reporting, about 62% of voters chose Goodman in the first round. Nick Kor, her nearest competitor, got about 26% of first-round votes.

Goodman was one of the three city council members not to publicly pledge to defund the Minneapolis Police Department.

She has served Ward 7 since 1998.

UPDATE (9:26 p.m.):

Linea Palmisano looks to have won re-election in Ward 13, which includes the Linden Hills neighborhood and the western half of Mde Maka Ska.

With all 13 precincts reporting, Palmisano amassed 66% of the vote in the first round. Her nearest competitor, Mike Norton, earned about 20% of the vote.

Palmisano was one of three councilmembers who did not pledge to defund the Minneapolis Police Department following the murder of George Floyd.

She has served Ward 13 since 2014.

UPDATE (9:18 p.m.)

Andrew Johnson appears to have been re-elected in Ward 12, which encompasses neighborhoods in far south Minneapolis

With all 13 precincts reporting, Johnson got nearly 65% of votes in the first round. His closest competitor, Nancy Ford, got about 30% of the vote.

UPDATE (9:09 p.m.)

Jason Chavez looks to have won the seat in Ward 9 left open by Alondra Cano, who did not seek re-election.

With all nine precincts reporting, Chavez garnered about 57% of first choice votes in the south Minneapolis ward.

Chavez's closest competitor, Mickey Moore, amassed about 14% of first-round votes.

In a statement, Chavez said that he's eager to work with Ward 9's residents to make sure they get the support they deserve.

"Tomorrow, and forever onwards, I am -- as always -- committed to the policies and values that will create a safer, stronger, more supported Southside for all of us," he said.

UPDATE (8:50 p.m.)

Andrea Jenkins appears to have won re-election in Ward 8.

With all precincts reporting, Jenkins had nearly 85% of the vote in the south Minneapolis ward that encompasses 38th and Chicago, the intersection where George Floyd was murdered.

Challenger Robert "Bob" Sullentrop earned about 14% of the vote.

Jenkins was among the city council members who pledged to defund the Minneapolis Police Department.

UPDATE (8:44 p.m.)

LaTrisha Vetaw appears to have upset Phillipe Cunningham in his re-election bid in Ward 4. She will become the first Black woman to hold the seat.

With all eight precincts reporting, Vetaw had just over 60% of the vote in Ward 4, which is located in north Minneapolis. Cunningham amassed around 30% of the vote.

Cunningham, first elected to office in 2017, was the first openly transgender man elected to public office anywhere in the United States.

Last year, he was one of a majority of city council members to publicly pledge to defund the Minneapolis Police Department following the murder of George Floyd.

Vetaw was outspokenly against the measure on the ballot to replace the Minneapolis Police Department. She said her stance on police "absolutely helped" her against Cunningham.

"I talked to the people of Ward 4," she said. "I knocked on as many doors as I could, I listened and I heard them loud and clear. They said they do not want the police department replaced."

What she offered voters was a vision of community working with the police department and other officials to "do better" for the north side and get "good police on our streets."

"The biggest thing for me was...that this issue of public safety was dividing all of us," she said, adding: "Now it's time for us to come together as a community and work on public safety. We deserve better."

For a look at the results in the other top races of 2021 in Minnesota, click here.