Lawsuit seeks to push Minneapolis DFL Ward 2 convention back to June

A fight over when the Minneapolis Democratic-Farmer-Labor party should hold the Ward 2 convention has spilled over into court.

A lawsuit filed in Hennepin County District Court by two delegates seeks to force the DFL to reschedule the Ward 2 convention, now set for Saturday, back to June 1, when it was scheduled at one point.

Incumbent Council Member Robin Wonsley is a democratic Socialist who has not sought DFL endorsement, but the lawsuit contends she has tried to block the DFL’s endorsement of “a strong candidate” in the race so she can campaign without party opposition.

The plaintiffs, Anthony Scallon and Karen Karkula, are members of the Minneapolis DFL Ward 2 Committee. They want a judge to intervene and prohibit the convention from taking place Saturday, and set the convention date back to June 1. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday before Hennepin County District Judge Karen Kanisch.

The plaintiffs’ attorney, John Lesch, said the judge could rule from the bench or take the case under advisement, which could invalidate any results if a Saturday convention is held.

Wonsley has said her supporters — many of them college students — were “aggressively confronted” at the DFL’s Ward 2 caucus. Wonsley has pushed for the earlier May 3 convention, saying moving it to June “blatantly disenfranchises many residents,” particularly University of Minnesota students who will have left campus for summer break by then. She promoted a petition to push for the May 3 date.

The lawsuit claims Wonsley is trying to interfere with the process and the June 1 convention should stand.

The Minneapolis DFL endorsement process has been rocked by several scandals in recent years: In 2023, the Ward 5 endorsement convention was canceled after the Minneapolis DFL executive committee refused to accept over 350 delegates amid allegations of of irregularities; the Ward 10 convention devolved into a chaotic melee; and the Ward 6 endorsing convention was cut short amid allegations that a candidate juiced his delegate count with fake email addresses.

Later that year, the FBI looked into election irregularities surrounding the endorsement process, but no indictments have come of it.

The DFL originally scheduled the Ward 2 convention for May 3, but didn’t have a location secured. On April 8, the party held precinct caucuses, where delegates were elected to ward conventions and a city convention, where candidates run for the party’s endorsement.

The lawsuit claims the turnout for the Ward 2 precinct caucus was so high that the planned location for its convention was deemed too small, and the party was unable to find a big enough venue for May 3.

After consulting with the Minneapolis DFL Executive Committee, chair Conrad Zbikowski, canceled the May 3 convention and rescheduled it for June 7 at the McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota campus, the lawsuit says. After learning that is the date of the Muslim holiday Eid, Zbikowski rescheduled the convention to June 1. Zbikowski resigned Wednesday from his position due to the litigation, saying he was threatened with a lawsuit over the convention.

But last week, the Minneapolis DFL’s executive committee voted to move the convention back to May 3 “in response to Wonsley’s demands,” the suit said. The committee mailed notices to delegates and alternates alerting them to the new date. The lawsuit contends the committee violated its own rules in doing so.

One of the members of the committee and former Minneapolis DFL chair, Briana Rose Lee, said in a statement that keeping the May 3 date will allow every delegate to participate fairly.

“Delaying the convention until after the UMN semester ends and dorms are closed is straight up voter suppression,” she said. “We should reject this attempt at intimidation and disenfranchisement.”

Wonsley said in a statement that any attempt to reschedule or cancel the convention suppresses the voices of student voters.