Minneapolis DFLers failed to endorse a candidate Saturday to oppose incumbent Robin Wonsley for the City Council’s Ward 2 seat, which represents the University of Minnesota and Como and Seward neighborhoods.
Former state Rep. Shelley Madore, who vowed to move forward with plans for George Floyd Square, fell 7 percentage points short of the 60% of votes needed for endorsement after engineer Michael Baskins dropped out of the endorsement battle (though he intends to stay in the race). Alexander Fooy, a U student who pledged to address food insecurity and housing development, received 5% of the votes.
At least 40% of the delegates voted for “no endorsement,” and attempts to continue the convention past Saturday to obtain an endorsement failed.
More than 50 people caucused for Wonsley, but delegates ruled their votes were invalid in part because Wonsley wasn’t seeking an endorsement.
The convention was held at the U’s Rarig Center despite a lawsuit filed by delegates Anthony Scallon and Karen Karkula. They contended it should be held in a bigger space on June 1 and that Wonsley — a self-described Democratic Socialist — wanted to block endorsement so she could campaign without a strong DFL challenge.
But Hennepin County District Judge Karen Janisch ruled the convention should go forward to minimize confusion and encourage attendance.
The convention, she wrote, “may be messy, may be chaotic, may require a continued date, and may result in further rifts, challenges or problems. The Court finds it is likely these issues will arise regardless of whether the convention occurs on May 3, 2025, or on an alternative date.”
Wonsley had written on social media that she didn’t seek the endorsement because the ward has worked independently of the city’s DFL party and because “conservative power players have backed challengers seeking the DFL endorsement in an attempt to prevent me from being elected.”
