Five In Ward Five? Candidates And Possible Candidates For The Council Seat Of Don Samuels, Plus Pressing City Issues...

Creative stock photo, blog post by John Hoff

With City Council Member Don Samuels running for mayor, the field of candidates for his seat in Ward Five is getting crowded.

Here are the individuals who I believe may be running...

Commentary On Kenya McKnight Commentary...

Photo and blog post by John Hoff

Maybe I could have written this commentary while the previous issue of Insight News was still sitting on the news racks, but one thing I've noticed is there's always PLENTY of copies left sitting on the news racks. And I wouldn't want to leave the impression I just couldn't wait to read the article by Kenya McKnight about Kenya McKnight...no, that old copy of Insight News was stuffed in my backpack, forgotten, and I found it recently while looking for some object. Not sure what object it was, but I'm fairly certain it wasn't a Sharpie marker.

So, months after some fairly brutal election results which left no doubt about the popularity of Council Member Don Samuels against, gee, four other contenders (political midgets one and all, but some were more midget-ey than others) unsuccessful Fifth Ward Candidate Kenya McKnight has published some commentary which, truthfully, would have been better off left unpublished.

In the article, McKnight talks about how her life had been "in a funk" for two years and how she'd "lost interest in everything including my responsibilities to support my life and eventually grew very tired of the world that surrounded me." As I read this article, dear reader, I had to ask myself...

...did I write a political parody piece and submit it to Insight News without REMEMBERING I'd done that? Because I could hardly believe what I was reading, here. In politics it is always possible to reinvent yourself, and the public has a short memory. Kenya could have waited a number of years, kept her head down, and tried running again. And, yes, she might still do that...but this article won't help her. In fact, I think this article will set Kenya back further, politically, than even her utterly unsuccessful run for public office.

Honestly, what voter in their right mind wants an elected official who makes running for public office sound like, well, an alternative to suicide or psychiatric hospitalization?

The fact Kenya wrote such an article is not THAT shocking...after all, a reliable source told me about Kenya's rather quirky beliefs in regard to the Queen of England, and when I asked Kenya about that subject directly, Kenya didn't go out of her way to deny it...so, yeah, I can see Kenya writing something c-r-a-z-y like this piece.

But what surprises me is the damn thing got PUBLISHED. That's what I find shocking. Didn't somebody at Insight News say, ever-so-gently, "Kenya, do you really think you want to say this kind of stuff? How you lost interest in your personal responsibilities so you decided to run for an office of, well, great responsibility?"

But everybody who was there at the Fifth Ward DFL convention remembers Insight News publisher Al McFarlane talking so long at the podium that Kenya McKnight--the actual candidate--had about 37 seconds left to speak. Once again, while taking on the guise of supporting Kenya McKnight, Insight News has done the young woman no favors.

Insight News Keeps A Low Profile When It Comes To Post-Election Editorials...

Photo By John Hoff, on the Northstar Line

After the November election, in which Council Members Don Samuels and Barb Johnson wiped the floor with their opposition, some of us were eagerly waiting to see what kind of editorial would appear in the pages of Insight News. After all, Insight News had vigorously supported Kenya McKnight and, for good measure, Natalie Johnson-Lee and "woman abuser" Lennie Chism. (Plus Troy Parker, who lost to Barb Johnson) Insight News had printed some of the most vile and disgusting anti-Don Samuels rhetoric, taking race-baiting to a whole new level.

But Kenya's vote totals were abysmal--just over fifteen percent--and Don Samuels won the election handily, actually becoming the first public official in Minneapolis to win through second round IRV voting, quite a historical footnote.

So those of us who are informed and follow neighborhood issues closely just had to wonder what kind of egg-on-face editorial would follow the election? Would Insight News say something along the lines of, "Oh, well, good job, Don...here's some issues we hope you will pay heed to in the next four years?" Or would Insight News cry foul and write some kind of bitter, whiney, pro-loser editorial? (Kind of like the Mpls Mirror?)

Whatever Insight News was going to write, I could hardly wait to read it! After all, it's not easy to say something articulate and graceful after embarrassing oneself so completely. Would Insight News be up to the challenge? Well, as it turns out...

No, Insight News was not up to the challenge. Once the election results were finalized and one might expect some kind of editorial, all Insight News had to offer was valuable advice on completely thawing and cooking your Thanksgiving turkey. Meanwhile, Don Samuels was actually out in the trenches helping to pass out turkeys at Cub Foods.

The strategy of Insight News appeared to be this: say as little as possible, so people will forget more quickly how wrong Insight News was in its hype about Kenya McKnight or, for that matter, in the decision to ignore all the troubling facts around Lennie Chism and just treat him as though he had creditability. In fact, Insight News talked about Lennie bringing "firepower" to the debates. (In fact, Lennie is not allowed to possess a firearm due to his legal problems with abusing a woman) So you have to wonder whether the "firepower" remark was some kind of Freudian slip.

One of my friends who closely follows Northside politics offered this observation. Four years ago, Insight News actually endorsed Don Samuels late, late in the election after mostly beating a drum of racial contention. After the endorsement, Don won the election. So perhaps Insight News got an ego-stroking notion that their endorsement MATTERED. So this election cycle, Insight News not only endorsed Kenya McKnight very early in the race, but sometimes actually seemed to be more involved in her campaign than Kenya herself.

(Word is McKnight expense reports are still being sought to see how those large ads were paid for week after week in the pages of Insight News)

How can any of us forget that excruciating moment at the Fifth Ward DFL Convention when Insight News publisher Al McFarlane spoke so long at the podium about Kenya McKnight, that McKnight herself had 37 seconds to make a speech?

In any case, just because Insight News endorsed Don Samuels four years ago, and Samuels won four years ago, doesn't mean there's a cause-and-effect relationship between the two events. After all, this blog made endorsements and most of our endorsements won, with the sole exception of Park Board candidate Michael Guest; who still made quite a strong showing. But a successful endorsement doesn't cause victory so much as it merely shows a media entity is in tune with the pulse of the majority of voters.

The conclusion, therefore, is inevitable: Insight News is severely out of touch with the pulse of North Minneapolis. Insight News vigorously endorsed what turned out to be a fringe candidate. And as for Lennie Chism, well, the man is a criminal and yet Insight News served him up like he was the greatest thing since...since...smokeless gunpowder.

When readers eagerly expected a post-election editorial, Insight News said nothing. (But did give valuable turkey preparation tips, let's not forget that) Their awkward, guilty silence speaks volumes. And that awkward, guilty silence should not go unremarked. Insight News tore open gaping wounds in the social fabric of North Minneapolis, printing ugly things about a decent man who has helped to turn our neighborhood around. Insight News has much to answer for.

One wonders when the answer will hit the pages of this "dead tree media" or will the awkward, guilty silence go on forever?

Hawkman Post-Election Analysis

Guest post by the Hawthorne Hawkman. Contributed photo.

Now that all but the last few park board seats have been officially declared, it's time to examine what happened in the 2009 city elections. I hate to get all legalistic, but it's gotta be done: The following commentary is attributed to Jeff Skrenes, private citizen, not John Hoff or any other organization that cannot weigh in on political candidates. (Click here for John's "gloves are off" post-election analysis.)

Now that we've dispensed with the formalities, here are a few post-election musings...

1. People are, by and large, satisfied with the direction NoMi is headed. All incumbents (including a park board rep not endorsed by this blog) in NoMi were returned to office. This is not to say that even the JNS-endorsed (and DFL-endorsed) incumbents are perfect, but that voters see the improvements in our neighborhood that are happening DESPITE an economic downturn of historic proportions, and credit much of these improvements to our elected officials.

It's been said that low voter turnout was an indictment against the status quo, and I heartily disagree. The number one indicator of voter turnout is how competitive the race at the top of the ticket is. That race was the Minneapolis mayoral race, and it was not in the least competitive. When the highest-profile race IS competitive, then you've got two key factors: A public that gets excited about and invested in the voting process, and not one but two campaigns running a wide GOTV effort. Without that in place, people wind up far less likely to get out and vote.

Anyone who says, "Oh, only 20% of voters got out and voted, so that means such-and-such a candidate that was reelected didn't REALLY have public support...well his or her opponents got EVEN LESS SUPPORT.

2. IRV/RCV is not a game-changer. For better or worse, Minneapolis is pretty much a DFL city, and incumbents who both want to keep their jobs and receive the DFL endorsement still have a major head start over challengers. I have my own reasons for feeling buyer's remorse over IRV (I was a supporter when it was introduced but now feel it's worse than what we had before), but at least this time around, it didn't change much. Candidates still needed to run good campaigns, and those who did not failed to garner votes. Several examples:

- Lennie Chism receiving less votes than Roger Smithrud. It is my opinion that Lennie, Natalie, and Kenya acted in concert, with Natalie and Kenya, and the deal was that he would be the pit bull to make Natalie and/or Kenya appear more moderate, and if either of them won then they'd return the favor later. I could be wrong about this of course, but my impression was that Lennie's only role was to attack Don as viciously as possible. Frankly, if I AM wrong then this is an even more damning indictment about the voters' response to Lennie's message.

- Kenya's challenges to the DFL endorsement were fruitless and exposed a campaign unprepared to navigate the minor arcana of the political process. Upon hearing the complaints raised by her campaign, I was left with the impression that the only basis for those complaints was, "No fair! They understood the rules and we didn't!" At best, I thought the challenge was made so that they could run a media blitz and try to de-legitimize the 5th Ward DFL endorsement. They didn't even do THAT much. But spending that much time and energy on the challenge wasted valuable resources and ultimately favored the incumbent. There's no way around it; this was a bad idea.

IRV may even have HELPED incumbents. To the degree that there was voter dissatisfaction in the 4th and 5th Wards, the lack of a primary meant that fringe candidates like Lennie Chism, Roger Smithrud, Marcus Harcus, and Grant Cemak were around to siphon off votes. (And as much as I like Marcus and recognize Cemak gained the Republican endorsement, the numbers show that those two WERE fringe candidates.) Under our primary system, voters would have had to choose between Samuels/NJL and Johnson/Parker. Those may have been much closer elections.

Along those lines, this blog was the first to declare winners in the 4th and 5th Wards, but I expect when the math plays out similarly in future IRV elections, other media will begin to feel more comfortable making similarly-timed predictions.

3. One thing that's very important is......TIMING!

I can't help but think of how different the elections would have been if Allan Kathir and Natalie Johnson Lee had gotten in the game earlier. While I have my doubts about whether either one would have affected the winning outcome, the races themselves would have been drastically different. I'd bet Kenya McKnight wouldn't have even run (certainly not past the DFL primary) if NJL was in the race from the start. Natalie might have had a chance to rally enough of the anti-Don Samuels voters to make a more serious run if she'd been in the race earlier. Kathir could have also made a stronger push if he'd been actively campaigning early enough to challenge Hofstede for the DFL endorsement.

The bottom line is this: If you don't have a core of volunteers ready to do the grunt work by the time precinct caucuses roll around, your chances of unseating an incumbent who IS prepared in that manner are very slim.

4. Rules matter.

Whether it was Kenya's ill-fated challenge to the DFL endorsement, her reported attempts to campaign at polling places on election day, or Marcus Harcus' Revere-like ride through NoMi (biking around and yelling through a bullhorn about voting, until someone called the police for disturbing the peace), or even RT's $26,000 penalty for campaign finance issues, rules were enforced. Seeing order upheld kept my faith in local democracy strong.

Regarding Harcus, I have to admire the political theater involved in his actions, even if they were ill-advised. He's someone I hope will continue to remain active in our community.

On a final note, I've heard people who associated with Flowers, NJL, and others go on about how they got to know these candidates personally, and they're such great people. Well when you're hanging out on Hillside Ave and you see Don Samuels stand up to gangbangers IN HIS SOCKS, you get to know him personally too. JNS readers who supported Samuels, Johnson, and Hofstede have worked side-by-side with these incumbents for years and know that these three are personally invested in our communities too. Thanks, and it's looking like the next four years will be even better in NoMi!

Johnny Northside "Gloves Are Off" Post-Election Analysis

Contributed photo


Walking to Cub Foods today, to buy some cage-free organic eggs, walking around unafraid of street crime, practically skipping and jumping with love for my rapidly-improving NoMi neighborhood, I picked up a copy of a not-very-widely-read North Minneapolis publication printed on overly-slick, too-glossy paper kind of like a porno magazine. Careful not to drop my eggs, I flipped through some old articles about candidates in the Fifth Ward city council election.

"Geez," I thought. "What a crude axe job on Don Samuels. Good thing I didn't read this BEFORE the election, because it would really irk me."

While scrambling my eggs, sizzle sizzle, I found myself basking (yes, BASKING) in the post-election world of FOUR MORE YEARS OF DON SAMUELS, WOO HOO!!!!!!!

How Many Years, Don? FOUR MORE YEARS, DON!

Well, I don't want to be a "sore winner" and go on about the crushed, defeated hopes and dreams of the losers--losers who said terrible, ugly, untrue things about Don Samuels--but those articles in The Sentinel really got me going. And even though I was holding back, even being a little bit lazy and procrastinating, I decided over that plate of scrambled eggs that it was time to do the JOHNNY NORTHSIDE "GLOVES ARE OFF" POST-ELECTION ANALYSIS.

So here we go...

Let's start with Lennie Chism, so Lennie can actually be first at something, for once. Lennie appeared to be playing the role of "bad cop" in this election, saying the kind of mean stuff Natalie Johnson-Lee couldn't say, because lord knows it didn't work for her in the last election. Yeah, let's just leave Lennie by the roadside for a moment, and talk about Natalie for a second (or, as the Sentinel called her, "Natvalie.")

Isn't it about time "Natvalie" found something better to do with her life than run against Don Samuels? I just thank god for heavy rain on election day, so people driving along Broadway didn't have to endure the sight of "Natvalie" holding a campaign sign and doing the bah-donk-a-donk for passing cars. I wasn't here four years ago to see it myself, but I've heard the stories.

In any case, what's the most amazing about "Natvalie's" campaign is that she basically used the same tactics, the same arguments that failed four years before. You know that old saying about fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me? Well, what about when you manage to fool yourself twice into thinking you can win? HELLO, she couldn't beat Don in HER OWN WARD after she'd been in office for FOUR YEARS and he was the NEWBIE TO THE FIFTH WARD. So what made her think she could beat Don after she'd been gone four years and CRIME WAS DOWN FORTY PERCENT? That's the kind of delusion which requires more than just a mental reassessment, but may call for actual psychotropic meds. I'm just saying.

Now let's say a word or two about Roger Smithrud. I tell you...

Roger Smithrud has class. And, I might add, good sense. On election night, he came to Don's victory party and reportedly scored more than one slice of pizza after congratulating Don. I picture that scene like something out of The Godfather. First, lay down the Italian opera soundtrack. Then in comes Roger, hat in hand, a terrified look on his face. He approaches Don, trying not to grovel but he's quaking inside. He says, "Don...Don...I don't know what I was thinking, trying to oppose you. I must have been crazy. My no-good slumlord brother, he put me up to it. Please, don't make me meet you at the Butter Roll Bakery. I'll be loyal from now on. I promise. I SWEAR IT--!"

And Don pats Roger on the cheek and says, "Roger...you think I thought for a minute you could hurt me? Roger, you amuse me. It's good, you coming around like this to show respect. Roger, have yourself some pizza. And, oh, hey...I like your hat. Can I have your hat? Thanks, Roger. This is kind of a trophy. I'll put it right next to the brick I got from Uncle Lennie's."

What's really funny about Roger Smithrud is that here's a guy who complained in the pages of The Sentinel about how he couldn't even swing enough time off from work to run a real campaign. And yet his vote totals--minor as they were--still blew Lennie Chism out of the water. And this with Insight News saying nice stuff about Lennie, virtually ignoring Roger.

Oh, yeah, let's talk about Insight News for a moment. This publication did everything in its power to promote Kenya McKnight, including having its publisher--Al McFarlane--speak so long and glowingly of Kenya at the Fifth Ward DFL Convention that there was hardly time for Kenya HERSELF to speak. At times, Kenya seemed almost like the CREATION of Insight News. Gee, I'd sure love to see the campaign expense reports showing who actually paid for all those large "dead tree" ads for Kenya in the pages of Insight News.

But when the rubber met the road, and those who actually SHOWED UP at the polls cast their votes, Kenya had a paltry 15.6 percent of the vote. In fact, she had less votes than 500, the magic number of residents on her so-called "petition" allegedly supporting her run for office.

First of all, this embarrassing public episode shows you what an endorsement from Insight News is worth. Second, Kenya needs to rethink who she lets into her life to advise her and put her up to stuff. Here's free advice to Kenya: go finish up your college degree before you try to run a major metropolitan area. The cringe-worthy misspellings on your Facebook page alone are a good reason to go back to school. And, really, why was Kenya running anyway when she knew the whole thing was rigged by the Queen of England? (Click here if you don't follow what I'm alluding to)

But back to Insight News and Lennie Chism. Insight News praised Lennie as somebody who brought new "firepower" to the contest in the Fifth Ward. OK, so let's talk about Lennie and "firepower." Lennie is a documented abuser of women whose ownership and possession of firearms anywhere in the United States--and Native American nations--is prohibited by law. So the idea of Lennie and "firepower" isn't even legal to have in the same sentence. Is this the kind of "insight" which this publication delivers to the community? Praise for a woman-abuser because their blind hatred of Don Samuels is so strong? I weep for the trees sacrificed to publish their evil gibberish about city council elections. (I will draw the distinction between their abysmal election coverage and their coverage of other stuff, some of which is actually useful and informative though still hardly worth the trees)

Last of the last, let's talk about the mayoral race. Mayor Rybak's tactic of not wasting time on a campaign against fringe opponents paid off handsomely for all of us. The mayor kept this great city running and didn't needlessly waste energy on an election that was already sewed up tighter than a professionally-rolled blunt. (Al Flowers...cough cough) The mayor's opponents were left to stew in the gut-wrenching bile of their own irrelevancy and whine about how the mayor wasn't running a real campaign against a motley grab bag of pity-inducing also-rans.

Mayoral candidate Al "I Am The Community" Flowers predicted he was running second in the mayoral race. In fact, he was third. Way third. When his votes were counted, Al Flowers had four percent. I say again, AL FLOWERS HAS GOT FOUR PERCENT. For those who aren't already familiar with the many North Minneapolis in-jokes about notorious loon Al Flowers, here is one of them: Al Flowers showing up at the JACC press conference, and yelling, "I got FOUR PEOPLE says you was illegal..." Over and over he shouts "I got FOUR people." So when people want to imitate or parody Al Flowers (and people often do) what do they say?

I GOT FOUR PEOPLE--!

Well, what does Al actually have? FOUR PERCENT OF THE VOTE.

Four percent of the vote and a couple bucks will get you a ride on the bus, but that still won't take you to the imaginary intersection of West Broadway and Colfax.

But enough about losers. Let's talk about winning. North Minneapolis (NoMi) just won another four years of unstoppable revitalization. Ironically, the folks who will benefit the most are the ones who were the most vulnerable to the hateful snake oil being sold by shysters like Lennie Chism. Thanks to Don Samuels, jobs and development are coming here, as well as higher-quality housing as slumlords are forced to provide the rental housing equivalent of good customer service. Children who were born into a tough neighborhood might yet live long enough to find themselves in a cool neighborhood, a fun neighborhood, a safe and prosperous place where everybody wants to be. They might take on a new sense of identity and make something of their lives instead of dying on a corner in hail of bullets.

Rumor has it a collective cheer went up inside the election office when the Samuels votes were totaled on the second round. It was like DING DONG THE WITCH IS DEAD because so many people at city hall couldn't bear the thought of working with Natalie Johnson-Lee. That collective cheer has rippled across our neighborhood, and our city, and as we remake our neighborhood the day is coming when the cheers for Don Samuels will spread across the country and the world. This is NoMi, and the future of NoMi is no longer in doubt.

We've passed the tipping point. We've tipped toward urban utopia.

Johnny Northside Blog Endorses Rybak, Samuels, Hofstede And, Oh Yes, Michael Guest...

Photo And Blog Post By John Hoff

In the manner of any other media entity, the Johnny Northside blog chooses to exercise the right to formally endorse political candidates for office. In the manner of a grassroots blog, I choose to print a photo of Diane Hofstede posing with a sausage...

Jeff Skrenes--who is both a private citizen AND the Hawthorne Housing Director--once said, "There is no good way to pose for a photograph while holding a sausage." It is unknown in which capacity Skrenes said that--Housing Director or private citizen. If I had to take a guess, I'd say...

Private citizen.

In any case, the image above was taken about a month ago at a backyard bonfire in the Hawthorne Eco Village where Council Member Diane Hofstede showed up in response to an invitation, that night giving many hours of her time to both casual conversation and policy discussion while my son, Alex, helped tend to the fire.

This is what we do in NoMi. We sit in our backyards, eating and drinking with our "band of brothers" neighborhood buddies and talking about how to improve our surroundings. Much comes of these discussions. It was wonderful of Hofstede to join us and hopefully we'll see her (and her amiable, engaging husband!) more frequently.

But back to the sausage...

The sausage was made by the husband of "the Polish lady," a highly-skilled artisan of meat. For a while this spring, it seemed like every time a decrepit old building got demolished, the Polish lady would come out in her yard to give sausage to both myself and Jeff Skrenes. I remember one early cold morning when that sausage was the only breakfast I had, since so many volunteer hours were being poured into the Eco Village. I posed with Jeff for a photo (both of us waving our sausages) and for ages that photo was my Facebook profile image. It is, therefore, right and fitting that Diane Hofstede receive one of these coveted and symbolic sausages. Our neighborhood has improved by leaps and bounds under her term in office, bouncing back from a foreclosure crisis which was the result of NATIONAL policies, not LOCAL control. Hofstede can't be blamed for the foreclosure crisis, but should get credit for her response.

In politics, there is a natural tendency for voters to reward incumbents when things seem to be going well, and to punish incumbents when things are going badly. This is not always fair, since many things which impact citizens are beyond the control of any particular public official. However, the incredible drop in crime experienced in Minneapolis--particularly North Minneapolis--appears to be a direct result of work by individuals like Rybak, Samuels, and Hofstede. When public officials do well, they deserve to be re-elected and we NEED them to be re-elected.

So, first and foremost, this blog endorses Rybak, Samuels, and Hofstede because of the incredible drop in crime and their work in the wake of the foreclosure crisis.

Secondly, none of these officials have any competition worthy to be their replacements. Rybak is facing a cast of cartoon characters so motley and depressing they remind me of group therapy sessions at the psychiatric facilities where I used to make a living. These opponents of Rybak don't need your vote so much as they need some meaningful purpose in their otherwise empty lives, with the exception of one candidate--You Know Who--who should be sedated and tagged with some kind of tracking device.

Nobody can blame Rybak for refusing to debate opponents when one of those opponents is infamous for outrageous, physically frightening behavior. There is debate enough in the media. The fact all of these opponents COMBINED don't have enough political jack to force the mayor into a face-to-face debate is all-too-revealing. Let this blog be the first to make this statement:

Congratulations, Mayor Rybak, on your re-election Tuesday, November 3. You deserved it!

Now as for Ward 5 City Council Member Don Samuels...

Like Rybak, Don Samuels is up against an unspectacular field of shrill political midgets, one of which is facing charges for an incident (allegedly) involving a violent altercation with his mistress. None of Samuels' opponents is worthy to hang up Don Samuels' coat at the Peace Foundation ball and--in desperation--they have resorted to crude, disgusting race-baiting rhetoric which didn't work in the last Ward 5 election, and likely won't work in this one. So, I have to wonder, what's up with that? Why would you use tactics that don't work TWICE? Did somebody skip Political Science 101?

Samuels has won the endorsement of Congressman Keith Ellison as well as the Star Tribune. Not only does this blog ENDORSE Don Samuels, but I predict a VICTORY MARGIN of 20 percent or more.

I regret that I, personally, will be driving a great big International box truck on election night, probably somewhere in Illinois. Please, somebody take a big swig of victory booze for Johnny Northside and mention my name. I'll be there in spirit.

One of Samuels' opponents (the one facing charges for alleged violence against a woman) said Samuels doesn't care about "the woman on the corner with three kids and no job."

However, Samuels has been overwhelmingly successful in bringing businesses to North Minneapolis which will create jobs and, furthermore, the Peace Foundation--which Don Samuels helped to start--has been directly credited by the Star Tribune as one of the factors in the steep drop in Minneapolis crime. Clearly, the mother with three kids would like her children to live in a neighborhood where bullets don't fly and hit children.

Samuels started as a neighborhood activist who cleaned up his block, driving out drug dealers. Now all of Ward 5 has become Don's block, and thank god for THAT. This blog enthusiastically endorses Don Samuels.

My endorsement for Diane Hofstede comes after much soul-searching. Realistically, Hofstede is going to win the election because she has no opponent with enough political jack to beat her.

It is true that in the past I have aired complaints of "unresponsiveness" at Hofstede's office. HOWEVER, let me say something about this whole idea of responsiveness: there is no end to the needs in Ward 3. When a politician is responsive, word gets out and guess what? More people contact the politician, wanting help. Inevitably, no "responsive" politician will be able to please everybody all of the time. It appears Hofstede took criticisms to heart which were made by myself and others, and her office is now quite responsive.

This much I know about Hofstede: she wants hookers and drug dealers out, out, out of Ward 3. She is no friend of slumlords, either, though she takes a prudent and measured approach which can cause neighborhood groups to grow impatient. But at the end of the day, things are going very well in Ward 3 and Hofstede deserves the credit, therefore Hofstede deserves re-election.

However, I would like to give an honorable mention to one of the other candidates in Ward 3, Allen Kathir. I believe Kathir will give Hofstede a run for her money.

Kathir is bright and running a professional campaign. I will give Kathir the same advice here which I gave him at a backyard bonfire: Allen, you are not a home owner. You RENT, for crying out loud. Constituents want a city council member who has committed themselves to the ward through home ownership and who doesn't answer to a landlord. I mean, they're called land LORDS for a reason. Somebody with that much power over a city council member might be inclined to use it.

Nope, I don't want my city council member answering to a landlord any more than I'd want my president answering to a pope. (Addendum: I hasten to point out, it's not a question of a person's FAITH but whether the person takes direct and specific marching orders, whether somebody has TOO MUCH POWER over that person. I assert that a landlord--ANY landlord--would have too much power over a city council person living under their rented roof. "President answering to a pope" was just the first controversial metaphor which came out of the mental bag)

Furthermore, Allen, you haven't been around long enough. You should BUY A HOME (prices have never been better!) join your local neighborhood association, and put in about half a decade of work to gain a reputation as a grassroots neighborhood activist. Pick some kind of difficult local project or problem and work tirelessly on that issue.

When the issue is solved, you will have a reputation as "the guy who tackled Problem XYZ," kind of like everybody knows Don Samuels cleaned up his own part of Ward 5. This kind of activism at the neighborhood level is the traditional path to a seat on the city council.

Allen, your work on civil rights doesn't quite reach a level of recognition within the neighborhoods of Ward 3. All the same, I hope you do VERY WELL on election night, simply because I hope you will stick around and run for more offices and put your energy and intelligence into bettering our city. Hofstede is a known commodity, and I feel safer with her because, for one thing, I feel I can read her attitudes about the police. But I'm not sure about yours, Allen. I feel like you're being much too careful about what you say, and if elected you may hamper effective police work in North Minneapolis with attitudes like those of Melissa Hill.

(Let the record reflect I would NEVER throw an ACTUAL tomato at Melissa Hill, nor any other vegetable, and there is no reason for the notoriously-excitable Farheen Hakeem to think otherwise)

Finally, my endorsement of Park Board candidate Michael Guest rests on different criteria. Parks are getting a raw deal, and this city needs somebody energetic and clever to shake up the dismal park situation. Michael Guest managed to get the endorsement of FORMER VICE PRESIDENT WALTER MONDALE. I mean, wow, how did a candidate for A LOCAL PARK BOARD pull off something like THAT?

Expect the best. Vote for Michael Guest.

On a final note: Come election night, Ward 5 needs every kind of poll watcher who can be rounded up to be available and observing action at the polls. When losers get desperate, they resort to cheating. Some of the candidates opposing Don Samuels already have signs posted at vacant houses, so who is to say VOTES may not come from those same addresses? Ward 5 already witnessed an incredible, vicious, bitter battle during the DFL endorsement process, click here.

Yes, you might "expect the best" and vote for Michael Guest, but when it comes to angry, unprofessional candidates like Kenya McKnight expect the WORST.

Call your friends. Call your neighbors. Ferry troops to the polls and keep an eye on those polls, for our lives really do depend on the outcome of this election.

ALL OUT ALL OUT ALL OUT FOR ELECTION DAY TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3!!!!!!!!!!!

I Saw the Signs

Guest post and photos (except for anonymously contributed photo) by the Hawthorne Hawkman

I was driving around the neighborhood today during one of my constitutionally protected lunch/free speech breaks, and took note of some rather annoying signs.

Here is a brief explanation of the three above pictures...

The first is a Natalie Johnson Lee sign that graces a vacant property. I found this to be a fun juxtaposition because of her campaign slogan on the sign: "Because we all live here." When I looked at the property records online, it appears that 1254 Russell Ave N has been vacant since at least 2003. Graffiti adorns one of the doors (of COURSE I called it in to 311. I even used the facial expression known as my "311 face.")

This property also has a spray-painted message apparently critical of Don Samuels for the building's vacant status. What about its owners? Why haven't THEY done anything for the past six-plus years? Oh, and the current owner happens to be a Seventh-Day Adventist CHURCH with an address in Kansas City. I thought there were RULES about churches supporting political candidates. Someone ought to file a formal complaint.

The next two photos above are of 2623 23rd Ave N. Determining who owns this vacant property is a bit more problematic. The city website still lists an individual owner. But this is where my mortgage geek skills come in handy. Claude Worrell is the Realtor listed on one of the signs. Mr. Worrell almost never represents individual sellers in north Minneapolis; meaning that this property is likely in some degree of foreclosure and is now being sold by a lender.

The Hennepin County foreclosure website seems to show that this is indeed the case. While the redemption period hasn't expired yet, the vacant state of the property makes it likely that it was shortened from six months to five weeks and the public websites haven't caught up with this yet. Hmmm...I wonder if Kenya McKnight got permission from BAC Home Loans to put that sign there?

And THEN someone sent me this picture in the mail today. I had traumatic flashbacks after seeing what was left on the porch.


Then there were these two signs, which actually soothed me a bit:



First off, both of these houses are OCCUPIED, making it more likely that an ACTUAL SUPPORTER is aware of a lawn sign. Second, lawn signs in multiple languages is a good signal that this candidate reaches out to everyone who lives here. There is a sign in Hmong along 26th as well, but these two prove the point just fine.

And I should be just fine myself. I'm not too worried about repercussions for my political blogging this time around. That's because I'm wearing the johnnynorthside.com hat.

BREAKING INSIGHT NEWS: Candidates for Public Office Think Highly of Themselves

Guest post by the Hawthorne Hawkman; image from minnesotaindependent.com.

I don't expect Insight News to be favorable to DFL-endorsed incumbent Don Samuels. After all, the paper endorsed Kenya McKnight early on. And that's their right; just like it's the right of Don Samuels supporters on this blog to stake out our positions.

And I'm not saying that an accurate portrayal of this or any other political debate has to present each candidate in an equal light. Could you imagine what would happen if we had to pretend that Roger Smithrud belonged on that stage as a legitimate candidate? What would happen if...I'm sorry, I wasn't as prepared for this question as I thought I would be.

There were two things that REALLY irked me about this Insight article, however...

First off, there were no quotes from Don Samuels whatsoever. Not what he said at the debate, and not his post-debate thoughts or evaluations. As the incumbent, Don's statements rise to the level of being newsworthy simply because he will be the one representing us until he either steps aside or is not re-elected. The statements of an incumbent at a debate give us context regarding what things are like in an area, how we got to a certain point, and what someone's vision is for moving forward.

I try to put myself in the shoes of someone who does not support CM Samuels, and I think of the 2004 Presidential elections and debates. I was virulently opposed to Dubya (although not really enamored by John Kerry). There was nothing that Bush could have said that would have swayed my vote to him. But yet I found his statements during the campaign and debates to be incredibly pertinent and newsworthy. Why doesn't Insight News at least bring its journalistic standards up to the point where even if they won't be balanced in their coverage, they can at least be substantive in their reporting?

Even more annoying though, were the closing statements from each candidate. McKnight, Johnson Lee, and Chism were all asked which candidate they thought did best at the debates. Oddly enough, Insight News didn't ask Samuels who he thought was most effective. It could be that they didn't feel the need to do that after re-posting an editorial full of racial vitriol reminiscent of the ugliness of the last 5th ward campaign. (And no, I'm not posting a link to that piece of garbage.)

So how did the other candidates answer the question of who they thought did best at the debates? This may come as a shocker, but they all pretty much said, "Believe it or not, it's me."

McKnight, Smithrud, And Chism Fail To File Campaign Expenditures Paperwork...

Photo By John Hoff

According to a reliable source, three candidates in the Fifth Ward City Council race have not filed full and complete campaign finance reports by September 8, as required. The three candidates are Kenya McKnight, Roger Smithrud, and Lennie Chism.

Reportedly, Kenya filed an incomplete and late report on or about September 23, and was notified by the campaign finance authorities that...

Her paperwork was not adequate. McKnight reportedly promised to file a more complete report the next day, but didn't show up and--as of Monday--still has not showed up.

Smithrud and Chism, on the other hand, have filed nothing as of Monday when my source last checked for a filing.

Fifth Ward Candidate Kenya McKnight Sidles Up To Television Camera At Yesterday's Crime Scene (Plus, JNS Blog Asks Her About "Queen Of England")

Yesterday, while providing grassroots media coverage of the murder of Haywood Eaton near (the notorious) Hawthorn Crossings Strip Mall, I ran into a television crew from WCCO and chatted, briefly and off-camera, with the camera man.

At that moment, who should come sidling up but Fifth Ward Candidate Kenya McKnight?

Kenya was obviously trying to finagle some face time with the camera and...

...in fact, verbally admitted that when an offhand remark was made, like, "Oh, look, here's Kenya. She's running for city council and trying to get in front of the camera."

So there was Kenya, and while the warmth left the body of Haywood Eaton on the sidewalk Kenya discussed her qualifications for Fifth Ward City Council member. Kenya said she knew "the language" of the streets and jobless youth, because of where and how she grew up.

With politician and public figure Kenya McKnight actually talking to me instead of trying to hide behind James Everett to avoid having her picture taken (like the camera would steal her soul) I thought it was a perfect opportunity to ask what I feel is the most pertinent and pressing Kenya McKnight question in the Fifth Ward race.

"So Kenya," I asked her. "I'm told you believe the Queen of England has some kind of influence over US electoral politics? Such as presidential elections? Is that true?" (Click here for an article I wrote after these reported beliefs of Kenya McKnight first came to my attention)

Kenya responded by giving me that blank, angry look--the same serious, unpleasant, pissed-off expression that Kenya sees fit to put on her campaign flyers--and answered, "Have you STUDIED the Queen of England?"

At that point, it seemed like the lights were on and somebody was indeed home...but the person home behind the pulled-down blinds just happened to be a nutty conspiracy theorist. I read Kenya's tone to say something like this: "You are the stupid one, Johnny Northside, because you don't know what I know about the Queen of England."

What can you do at a moment like that? I figured the best course of action was to BACK AWAY SLOWLY from the nesting grounds of the loon.

At Least One Shot Dead Near Hawthorn Crossings Strip Mall...

Photo By John Hoff OR Alex Hoff, photographer can't be determined

A black male in his late teens was laying dead on the sidewalk directly in front of Hawthorn Crossings strip mall, a location notorious for constant drug dealing in the parking lot, frequently the subject of this blog in prior posts, click here and also here for examples. Two young black females were seen kneeling by the body, tenderly touching his face. The rest of the man's body was covered by a heavy gray blanket. Later, one of the women was seen to be placed in a squad car at the scene after talking with police.

A green Tahoe-like vehicle was seen stopped at the drive through window of the nearby Burger King, with a pair of sandal-like shoes several feet from the vehicle. Police appeared to mark the shoes as evidence and mark other items near the shoes, possibly blood or shell casings. Rumors and even eyewitness accounts were circulated freely among the large crowd gathered at the scene. WORD ON THE STREET ABOUT HOW THE INCIDENT WENT DOWN was as follows...

People had been arguing and a fight broke out. The argument was apparently somewhat mobile. One individual claimed it started near the former location of the "butt fence" at Merwin's Liquor. The individual who was later shot was reportedly getting beat up as part of the arguing and fight. The shooter was there at the fight, but left.

A short while later, the shooter came back and appeared from near the rear of Burger King on West Broadway. He had a t-shirt pulled up over his face. Shots were fired. The individual seen dead on the sidewalk was not shot where he lay, but apparently shot near the green Tahoe-like vehicle and ran or staggered to an area directly in front of the Hawthorn Crossings strip mall sign, on the sidewalk near shrubbery, which would be the intersection of W. Broadway and Bryant Ave. N.

A police officer at the scene was observed pleading with the crowd for somebody to come forward if they had information. Nobody was seen to come forward, though there was clearly at least one woman in the crowd who had been giving an eyewitness account to a bystander only moments before. Later, an employee from the strip mall who claimed to have witnessed the events from a distance said the shooter had long ago been taken into custody and was in a squad car near the body.

A persistent rumor circulated that in addition to the dead man on the sidewalk, that a female--possibly his girlfriend--had been shot and injured. An even more troubling rumor circulated that a 2-year-old child was dead in the shooting. If so, the child's body was nowhere to be seen but the rumor caused what can only be described as fury and near-panic among some members of the crowd. I saw the rumor arrive via cellphone to one of the bystanders in the crowd.

Numerous police were at the scene as well as a crime scene van and an area of a couple blocks was roped off with plastic crime scene tape, which kept expanding, the crowd always urged to move back. The tape actually expanded over the vehicle I arrived in, and permission had to be obtained from police brass to move the vehicle.

Adding a new and disturbing layer to the grim scene, Fifth Ward City Council candidate Kenya McKnight arrived and appeared to be mining the crowd for names to add to some kind of list, and trying to wheedle an interview with a camera crew from WCCO.

ADDENDUM: Other media are reporting the dead man was 18, therefore my estimate of the victim being in his 20s has been corrected in this post. Other media reporting a juvenile taken to North Memorial with non-life threatening injuries. The fact rumors were circulating in the crowd about a baby being killed remains true, in that these rumors were indeed circulating in the crowd. Here is a link to the Star Tribune story.

ADDENDUM NUMBER 2: Star Tribune now reporting the individual hurt was a "teenager," so hopefully this is the case and the rumors about a baby were some form of misinformation and hysteria.

Farheen Hakeem's Latest Green Party Power Play Goes Down In Flames...(John Hoff Still A Member Of Green Party)

Above, Farheen Hakeem, below, material from JNS blog, Exhibits A and B at the "trial of Johnny Northside" 

Previously, this blog reported an attempt by a small, extremely negative and power hungry group of Fifth District Green Party members to "unendorse" City Councilman Cam Gordon, simply because Gordon tried to play nice and be friends with Mayor RT Rybak, whose odds of winning the next election are only slightly less than those of the sun coming up tomorrow.

Well, Farheen Hakeem and the "Hakeem Squad" sure didn't like the bloggy things I wrote about Melissa Hill, click here, or Kenya McKnight, click here, but I'm more inclined to think her true beef with Johnny Northside involved this piece I wrote, click here.

So yesterday afternoon, Farheen was (by her own admission) the person responsible for trying to revoke the "5 CD" Green Party membership of yours truly...

So how did that go for Farheen? About as well as Al Flowers' mayoral campaign. I'm hoping to get the "please revoke Johnny's membership" document put into PDF form and posted to this blog, so everybody else can enjoy this comic masterpiece.

However, much was revealed by the tragic failed attempt at revocation, including an incredible written statement to the effect some Green Party members had gone "crawling and begging" to Fifth Ward city council candidate Kenya McKnight, asking her to seek a Green Party endorsement.

(Scrunching my eyes. Clutching the bridge of my nose. This is MY POLITICAL PARTY we're talking about, here. "Crawling and begging" to KENYA MCKNIGHT? God, the burning shame)

Anyway, the messy and typo-riddled membership revocation request said some pretty nasty things about City Councilman Don Samuels, which isn't surprising given the fact Farheen Hakeem is frequently spotted in Al Flowers' charming company at various events, and Flowers' bitter struggles against Don Samuels are pretty well documented including, like, on YouTube. Click here.

For the record, there is no member of the Green Party running in the Fifth Ward, and if I think Don Samuels is the best of the five (much shorter) candidates, I'm free to say so.

The highlight of the "5 CD" Green Party meeting had to be when statements were made that yours truly--Johnny Northside--was scary and threatening because of, for example, pointing a finger towards Farheen in the course of a meeting. Farheen made some statement to the effect having a finger pointed at her was threatening because she is a Muslim woman. Somewhere in the course of this ridiculous discussion, one of the other Green Party members innocently and accidentally discharged a loaded finger in Farheen's direction.

Meanwhile, Farheen Hakeem hangs out with mayoral candidate and notorious nutcase Al Flowers, whose involvement with a statement about "kill the house n***r is infamous.

At a previous meeting, Farheen claimed she lived by the motto "if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen" but it appears Farheen can actually be described like so:

She can dish it out, but she can't take it.

More to follow, but here's the bottom line: I am not only still a member of the Fifth District Green Party (5 CD) but, to assure I would remain a Green no matter what the results, I went online and joined the Minnesota State Green Party, click here. So I've actually emerged from this "tempest in a green teapot" much greener than before.

Specific Achievements On A Political Flyer--What A Concept!

Photo By John Hoff

Since I wrote about Natalie Johnson-Lee's flyer, which "showed up" in my hands a while ago, click here, and I also wrote about Lennie Chism's crude attempt at a flyer, click here, I thought it would be a good idea to write about a political flyer that came into my hands from the Don Samuels camp.

Actually, the way it happened, Don Samuels kindly loaned his van to a neighbor who needed to move furniture, and I helped with the move, and (oh gee) one of the flyers was in the van. So I was all, like, score. This is my flyer, now, for blogging purposes.

I'm told Samuels has more than one flyer, but the flyer I obtained is current enough to be considered a Samuels flyer. It has more specific content than the flyers of Natalie Johnson-Lee and Lennie Chism COMBINED. What a shame I don't have flyers from Kenya McKnight and Roger Smithrud.

First and foremost, Don Samuels is a labor endorsed candidate and so his flyer says "Labor Endorsed" and has (oh gee!) a union print shop emblem. There's really no rule that says ONLY a labor endorsed candidate can get what's called a "union bug" on their flyer. Heck, anybody who orders stuff at a union print shop can request one of the emblems to appear on the flyer. So you have to wonder...

Why Natalie Johnson-Lee, who mentions being friendly to labor, can't be bothered with the nicities of using a union print shop? It makes more sense with Lennie Chism because his amatuerish junk appears to be produced on a color photocopier plus you have to wonder if his fast-talking entreprenuerial outlook is pro-union or just pro-Lennie.

Reading Don Samuels' flyer is a little bit of an education in some of the key events happening the last few years in North Minneapolis.

JOBS AND DEVELOPMENT:

# Broadway Plaza--a $70 million project that will jump start the revitalization of West Broadway.

# YWCA--the largest in the nation--will anchor the Plaza.

# Coloplast Headquarters--600 Northside jobs!

# University of Minnesota Urban Research Engagement and Outreach Center.

# Standard Heating--80 new jobs.

RENOVATION AND REVITALIZATION

# Revitalization of the North Regional Library

# YMCA--newly renovated and dedicated exclusively to our youth.

# Over $70 million directed to North Minneapolis to respond to the foreclosure crisis.

# Slumlords Accountability Program--revoking licenses of problem slumlords.

# West Broadway Alive--revitalizing North Minneapolis' Main Street

# Washington Boulevard Plan--making Washington Avenue into a grand, pedestrian friendly boulevard.

PUBLIC SAFETY

# 28 percent decrease in violent crimes and over 40 percent reduction in youth violence.

# 35 percent drop in homicide since 2006 and only five homicides citywide through June 2009.

# Authored anti-loitering ordinance to help remove drug dealers from our streets.

# Grocery Store Task Force--closed Big Stop, Uncle Bills and Wafanas, stores which together generated 2,500 calls to 911 per year.

# Helped steer the entire Police Technology Budget (over $1.3 million) to North Minneapolis.

# Acquired "shot spotter" with an integrated camera system--in these monitored areas, crime has fallen 63 percent.

(End of text from the back of the flyer)

(JNS editorial note: the flyer says "Uncle Bills" and "Wafanas." I prefer to use a possessive apostrophe with these names, however, I have seen the names written both ways in the mass media)

The front of the flyer features Don's message to his constituents, as follows:

Friends and Neighbors,

Collaboration and accessibility has been a guiding principal of my public service. Together we have sent the message tht the 5th Ward and its needs will not be ignored. As your Council Member I have built strong public/private partnerships that have brought significant resources to our community. Six years later, these collaborations are transforming our community, and we can see the positive changes in our neighborhoods.

I look forward to continuing to keep 5th Ward residents at the forefront of the City's agenda. With your support this election, I promise that I will continue to be a strong voice for us all.

http://www.donsamuels.com/

Chipper The Entrepreneurial Squirrel Running As A Write-In In Ward 5, Announces First Campaign Issue: Decorative Address Letters Not Sharpie Marker...

Photo By RUN! BROOM!

Chipper The Entrepreneurial Squirrel, who first came to the attention of this blog due to his involvement with the old "Uncle Bill's" store purchased by Lennie Chism, sent me a press release written on the back of several snack food wrappers announcing his write-in campaign for City Council Squirrel in Ward 5. In tiny letters penciled, rather neatly, on the back of an "Almond Joy" wrapper, Chipper says as follows...

OK, yeah, I'm running and there's not even a car behind me, ha ha.

But seriously, I know I can't win because I don't meet some of the basic criteria for a Ward Five City Councilman, like being a member of the human species. But I'm hoping that if I can get a good number of write-in votes and draw attention to myself, these rules can evolve and I will be allowed to take office as Ward Five City Council Squirrel.

My plan is to get more votes than Lennie Chism. Everybody is talking about how the...

(Next candy bar wrapper, Snickers)

...votes will break down in Ward 5. Here's my prediction: Don Samuels, 55 percent, Kenya McNight, 20 percent, Natalie Johnson Lee, 19 percent, and after that with minor numbers of votes: Smithrud, Chipper The Entrepreneurial Squirrel, and Lennie Chism.

I want to emphasize that it's not personal against Lennie. In fact, I do business with the guy and I'm very eager to do business with him later in the fall, when he will own a VERY LARGE HOLE IN THE GROUND right during prime nut hiding season. But I believe I'm the better candidate because...

(Next wrapper, Doritos Cool Ranch)

Well, even I could see buying the old Uncle Bill's store to make it into an Uncle Lennie's was A CRAZY IDEA. And now when he should be scrambling to get financing to fix it up, he's running for city council as well? This is like being in the middle of the street trying to watch two speeding cars on opposite sides of you, with both your little googly eyes! Even I know better than that. Sorry Lennie. But very excited about the hole!

As for myself, I'm kind of a "little picture guy." I'm too small and low to the ground to see the big picture, but I see the little pieces very well. So I'm going to run on some of the little issues that would usually get neglected in a political campaign that's all about "vision" and "future" and "can somebody please replace my Don Samuels yard sign that got stolen AGAIN?" For the record, squirrels are clean animals and I'm going to run a clean campaign. I would never steal anybody's Blackberry device and I understand that, despite the name, these devices are not good to eat.

(Next wrapper, Flaming Hot Cheetos)

My one campaign issue at this point--and I don't know, maybe I'll find more issues later. It's not like they grow on trees like acorns. My one issue is address letters on residential and commercial buildings. I think buildings should have NICE letters, maybe of polished wood so they look like delicious nuts that give you knowledge of where you are instead of giving you a snack.

Buildings that have addresses made from stick-on letters or Sharpie Marker (like Keith Reitman's building on the 1400 block of West Broadway) just look tacky and don't promote economic development. For the record, I think Keith Reitman should be free to write on his building if he likes. If he wrote "Vote For The Squirrel" I'd be happy. Let me emphasize I'm still quite willing to do business with Keith Reitman, who has A LOT OF PROPERTY, like maybe a million dollars worth, even though he no longer owns 1564 Hillside Ave. N., which has very nice trees!

So I think Reitman could easily afford some address letters that cost, like, a buck apiece. Here's a picture I took at Home Depot before they chased after me with a broom.

(Next wrapper, microwave popcorn bag)

Also, Sharpie markers are just yucky. Like, if you find one in a pile of leaves you might think it looks like some sort of special human treat, like a Pez Dispenser or Push Up bar. But it's not. Sharpies taste really yucky. Don't put one in your mouth. I'm just warning you.

In conclusion, remember, this is ranked choice voting so you can have your cake and vote for a squirrel, too! Some of my other squirrel friends might run for office, as well, but remember to make Chipper The Entrepreneurial Squirrel YOUR FIRST CHOICE on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Show up and vote for CHIPPER THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SQUIRREL.

Rah. Ch-ch-cheer!

Don Samuels Versus Four Angry Political Midgets In An IRV World...

Stock Photo By John Hoff

Instant runoff voting throws some new and interesting twists into this November's city council race, and some political commentators seem to think the Fifth Ward City Council race will be impacted. Personally, I see the race as "Don Samuels Versus Four Angry Political Midgets" and I don't think IRV will be a factor. None of the people opposing Don Samuels is particularly impressive, individually or collectively. More on that in a bit.

However, trying to anticipate exactly how IRV will impact the race has been a vague mental exercise. Until today, that is. Hawthorne's Housing Director, Jeff Skrenes, is extremely good with arcane numerical crap. This is a guy who calculates the exact percentage he saved on his grocery store purchases by using coupons. So Jeff came up with some specific scenarios of how IRV might impact the Fifth Ward Race, as follows...

(These words are from Jeff Skrenes, verbatim)

Here's my understanding of how IRV would work.

Let's say that nobody gets 50% plus one (and that's one vote, not one percent) on the first ballot. In this hypothetical situation, the votes break down this way:

Don Samuels 40%
Kenya McKnight 20%
Natalie Johnson Lee 15%
Lennie Chism 14%
Roger Smithrud 11%

I realize this may be generous to one or more of the challengers here (or some may think I'm being generous to Samuels) but I'm illustrating a point.

In this case, nobody got 50% + 1, so Smithrud is eliminated. Everybody who voted for him as their first choice now has their ballots re-examined. If they voted for a second candidate, then their second choice gets the votes when the ballots are counted again. And everybody's first choice besides the eliminated candidate remains the same.

So if every single Smithrud supporter voted for Samuels as their second choice, then the tally on the second round would look like this:

Samuels 51%
McKnight 20%
Johnson Lee 15%
Chism 14%

And Samuels would be declared the winner.

But let's assume that Smithrud's votes are evenly distributed among all candidates. It would then look roughly like this:

Samuels 43%
McKnight 23%
Johnson Lee 18%
Chism 17%

Then Chism would be eliminated, and all of the voters who voted for him would have their second choice counted in the third round. Likewise, anyone who voted for Smithrud as their first choice and Chism as their second choice would have their third choice counted. This process would repeat itself until someone received 50% + 1 votes.

From a political calculus standpoint, the DFL-endorsed incumbent in a DFL-leaning city and district has a head start in terms of votes. But regardless, the system still favors whoever starts out with the most votes.

IRV could help a challenger to Samuels if there are two candidates who finish very strong and everyone else is far behind. Then it doesn't take too many votes to put the second-place finisher over the top.

In an election with more than two candidates, IRV could help third (and fourth) (and fifth) candidates garner more votes. Someone could say, "I don't support Samuels, and I really want Lennie Chism to win, but I think Kenya McKnight is the more viable contender." So they would vote for Lennie as their first choice, and Kenya as the second choice, knowing that if/when Lennie is eliminated, they didn't "waste" a vote by voting for their favorite candidate. What seems more likely, however, is that the candidate with the most votes after the first round will get enough of the second and third choice votes as other candidates are eliminated.

Here's another fun possibility: since there are five candidates, it is at least remotely possible that the bottom three vote-getters will split enough amongst themselves that the top two candidates still do not have a simple majority. So let's say that every single Johnson, Chism, and Smithrud supporter voted ONLY for Johnson, Chism, or Smithrud as their top choices, and neither Samuels nor McKnight won a 50% + 1 tally. I THINK at that point, the person with the most total votes would win, but I'd have to check for sure.

Well, this wasn't as fun as, say, explaining the intricacies of how to calculate a prepayment penalty on an ARM loan indexed to the LIBOR rate, but it did get pretty geeky.

(End of explanation by Jeff Skrenes)

Thanks Jeff. Intricacies of IRV aside, there are only two choices in this race: Don Samuels or the angry wannabes, what I call the "four political midgets." (Jeff is not responsible for the following analysis)

ANGRY MIDGET NUMBER ONE: Natalie Johnson-Lee was involved in one of the nastiest, dirtiest campaigns in the history of the City of Minneapolis and yet still couldn't beat Don Samuels in what used to be her own ward before redistricting. She jumped in at the last minute and--to make matters more confusing--her old campaign manager, Jerry Moore, now appears to be associated with Kenya McKnight. (Click here for some documentation of that)

I'm told on good authority that Johnson-Lee used to have Mary Kay and Tupperware parties in her council office and would sit and pay her bills while on the city council dais. Well, one can't fault the last part too much. Certain members of the Jordan Area Community Council "Old Majority" would certainly benefit from the bill-paying example.

ANGRY MIDGET NUMBER TWO: Kenya McKnight. A couple weeks ago, I was at Farview Park and I saw Kenya McKnight keeping company with perennial also-ran James Everett. When I pointed my camera in her direction to get a stock photo, McKnight actually stepped behind some people to avoid my camera.

It wasn't the first time I've seen her do this, she did the same thing during the Broadway Art FLOW. (And she was hanging around with perpetual loser James Everett then, too)

What kind of political candidate doesn't want her PICTURE taken? Is she afraid the camera will steal her soul? (Editorial remark by Chipper The Entrepreneurial Squirrel: Maybe she's afraid somebody will steal her nuts, but Kenya's nuts aren't the kind you can steal)

ANGRY MIDGET NUMBER THREE: Lennie "The Heckler" Chism, also known as "Uncle Lennie" since his bargain basement purchase of the old Uncle Bill's store. Lennie is the kind of guy who buys a vacant building scheduled for demolition and then tries to make it seem like political oppression when the city wants to move forward with tearing down the building. In this way, Lennie's kind of like Mayoral Candidate Al "I Am The Community" Flowers pissing and moaning about having to pay his utility bill like everybody else.

Like, oh, look at me! I'm oppressed, I have to PAY MY WATER BILL!

ANGRY MIDGET NUMBER FOUR: Roger Smithrud is the midget of the midgets. He even physically resembles a garden gnome. But at least Smithrud will stand still to have his picture taken instead of acting like a movie star being chased by paparazzi, like, oh, it's so invasive HAVING MY PICTURE TAKEN when I'm RUNNING FOR POLITICAL OFFICE.

Smithrud claims he once supported Don Samuels. Well, something seems to have changed after Samuels was in favor of tearing down a crappy apartment building owned by Smithrud's brother. So Smithrud is an angry midget, but his anger appears to stem from a different source than the other three anti-Samuels candidates, something more right wing and rooted in property rights fanaticism.

Jeff Skrenes is much better at political predictions than I am--at least to the tune of $2 in wagers--but I have a wager going with Don Allen for a dinner at the Monte Carlo that Don Samuels will win the race. Personally, I think Samuels will win by racking up more than 50 percent of the vote on the first round. Each of the "political midgets" is a small, tragic character and each of them makes Samuels appear an even better choice. (And he's already a great councilman or, as Kenya McKnight would put it, a very very very good councilman)

So that's my call. Samuels by more than 50 percent on the first round, and who gives a rip about IRV?

This Weekend Is The North Minneapolis Art FLOW...

Image from Art FLOW website

We haven't yet experienced this weekend's North Minneapolis Art FLOW, which I'm sure will be wonderful, and here's a website with the details, click here, but I'm already thinking of how it could be better.

Let's have a stage featuring debates over the colorful political issues which make North Minneapolis so much more fun than the dreary, boring suburbs! We could have Mayoral Candidate Al "I Am The Community" Flowers giving a talk about how...

...it's political oppression that he is forced to pay his water bill like everybody else, or suffer the consequences. Sure, I know Al Flowers actually lives in South Minneapolis, but he's kind of a fixture of North Minneapolis politics so, I say, let's put him to work entertaining us ON PURPOSE instead of BY ACCIDENT. As part of the same "political sideshow," we could also have Council Member Don Samuels debating four political midgets.

And, as the dramatic finale of the show, we could have "Uncle" Lennie Chism in a free-for-all debate with 75 percent of the residents living near the old "Uncle Bill's" location, arguing the fate of that building. In the middle of the show, somebody rolls out a big video screen which shows--GOOD HEAVENS!!!--a wrecking ball smashing the building to smithereens! (Click here to guess the day and hour of the demolition)

Yes, we have colorful politics in North Minneapolis. Lately, it seems the politics are more intense than usual because everything--the fate of our neighborhood for decades--is being decided within a relatively small span of time through demolitions, sales of numerous vacant properties, and revitalization plans being announced like the World's Largest YWCA. In the midst of this positive change, some are fighting to save rancid remnants of the troubled past like the old Uncle Bill's store. This anti-revitalization fight may grow very loud--especially prior to the November city council elections--but the trend toward revitalization is too deep, and possesses too much traction, to fail.

This weekend's Art FLOW will be an opportunity to take a look at how far we've come, and celebrate how far we're going, as all kinds of new faces arrive to take a peek at NoMi and enjoy this grand event.

Roger Smithrud Files For Ward 5 City Council!!!!! (Oh, Yeah, And So Did Kenya McKnight)

Photo By John Hoff

Yesterday, two candidates for City Council in Ward 5 filed on the same day for the seat held by Council Member Don Samuels.

Roger Smithrud filed as a member of the Independence Party, listing his address as 2357 James Ave. N. He has previously run for state rep in 58B.

Kenya McKnight--who was interested in a Green Party endorsement mere days ago, but flaked out--filed as a member of the DFL, listing her address as 1230 Morgan Ave. N., #2.

ADDENDUM: Or, shall I say, Lenn-dendum? It is now confirmed that Lennie "The Heckler" Chism, who recently bought the Uncle Bill's store for $3,000 with a grand scheme of turning it into an organic food store, has also tossed his hat into this rather crowded ring.

ADDENDUM TO ADDENDUM: Natalie Johnson Lee is now in the race, making it a five-way in Ward 5. Natalie is running as DFL to which this Green Party member says "Thank God." 

(Do not click "Read More")