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TruthToTell, Mon.,Nov 7@9AM: DAVID COBB-MOVE TO AMEND/ST PAUL'S RCV - KFAI FM 90.3/106.7/KFAI.org

GIVE TO THE MAX IS BACK - for 2011: PLEASE CLICK ON THE APPLICABLE BUTTON IN THE BOX AND HELP US HELP YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR WORLD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS. DONATE TODAY!! And Thank You!

Remember – call and join the conversation – 612-341-0980 – or Tweet us @TTTAndyDriscoll or post on TruthToTell’s Facebook page.

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream and later on Blip.tv or in iTunes or under Archives tab above!

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 A reminder for St. Paul Voters: Tuesday is Election Day, when all seven City Council seats and four of seven School Boardseats are up for election under the city’s new Ranked Choice Voting system, allowing you to cast your first-choice, second-choice and, if present, third and fourth-choices for City Council candidates in your ward. We’ve aired discussions among each of five of the contested races for Council over the last four weeks, and those are available by click on the Archives tab above and scrolling down to your particular race. Three of those four shows are also in video under the Archives tab. Our First Segment this week will cover some of the pitfalls of the new system, if you’re not careful. There was no Primary, so all candidates who filed for these offices are on your ballot. The tope four vote-getters among ten School Board candidates will win. 

RCV does not apply to the School Board race.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVE TO THE MAX IS BACK - for 2011: PLEASE CLICK ON THE APPLICABLE BUTTON IN THE BOX AND HELP US HELP YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR WORLD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS. DONATE TODAY!! And Thank You!

Remember – call and join the conversation – 612-341-0980 – or Tweet us @TTTAndyDriscoll or post on TruthToTell’s Facebook page.

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream and later on Blip.tv or in iTunes or under Archives tab above!

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A reminder for St. Paul Voters: Tuesday is Election Day, when all seven City Council seats and four of seven School Boardseats are up for election under the city’s new Ranked Choice Voting system, allowing you to cast your first-choice, second-choice and, if present, third and fourth-choices for City Council candidates in your ward. We’ve aired discussions among each of five of the contested races for Council over the last four weeks, and those are available by click on the Archives tab above and scrolling down to your particular race. Three of those four shows are also in video under the Archives tab. Our First Segment this week will cover some of the pitfalls of the new system, if you’re not careful. There was no Primary, so all candidates who filed for these offices are on your ballot. The tope four vote-getters among ten School Board candidates will win. RCV does not apply to the School Board race.
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What do we mean by corporate personhood – and why is this not a good thing?

Some history:

In 1819, the Supreme Court, in Dartmouth College v. Woodward, recognized corporations as having the same rights as natural persons for the purpose of entering into contracts and enforcing those contracts. Later, in 1886, the Court’s Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad decision (118 U.S. 394 [1886]) recognized corporations as persons for the purposes of the Fourteenth Amendment (states must provide equal protection under the law to all people within their jurisdiction).

Those two rulings have thus provided the century-old underpinnings for a number of subsequent decisions equating corporations with real people, two of the most recent being Buckley v. Valeo, which equates campaign finance with free speech – a true precedent in its own right – followed by last year’s 5-4 Citizens United (Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission) ruling, yanking all restrictions on corporate (and union) campaign monies and allowing unlimited dollars to flow directly to support or defeat candidates, just not to the campaigns themselves.

The 2010 elections demonstrated starkly the fallout from all of these rulings on the make-up of Congress, especially the reversal of the Democratic House majority to Republicans, and of several governorships and state legislative bodies. The best examples of the latter are Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and Florida, and the passage of truly onerous, anti-worker, anti-teacher legislation. Corporate personhood gave life and power to the Koch brothers’ wealth as the primary financing tool of both the Tea Party entities and specific electoral contests in those states.

Presidents and early political figures – including Lincoln, Cleveland [1888], Eisenhower [1958] and the original Progressive, Wisconsin’s Robert LaFollette [in 1897] – plus legal scholars –  have condemned the role of corporations in American political life and in every aspect our economy, many of those luminaries saying that uncontrolled corporations represent serious threats to our nation’s political and economic stability – and still they persist through their economic and political control, mergers, acquisitions, let alone their refusal to heed employee and consumer rights, to push for more.

Now comes an overt movement to reverse all of those rulings by means of a Constitutional amendment and calling itself Move to Amend. The amendment would add language that says Congress and the states can regulate campaign contributions and expenditures, rather than directly address the legal finding that election law denied corporations their right to free speech. Minnesota has its own chapter or branch and we’ll hear more about all of this as Move to Amend becomes one of the siren songs of theOccupy phenomenon.
TTT’s ANDY DRISCOLL and MICHELLE ALIMORADI engage local and national advocates on the role of corporations and Move to Amend – after we highlight the practical pitfalls of Ranked Choice Voting in St. Paul tomorrow with our Resident Expert.

GUESTS:

Segment 1:

JEANNE MASSEY – President, FairVote/Minnesota, Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) Advocates

Segment 2:

DAVID COBB – former Presidential Candidate for the US Green Party, National Projects Director of Democracy Unlimited and official spokesperson for MOVE to AMEND

MARK HALVORSON – Board Member, fmr Director, Center for Election Integrity; Local Organizer, MOVE to AMEND

NATHAN JOHN NESS – Local Organizer, MOVE to AMEND 

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TruthToTell, Nov 7: DAVID COBB-MOVE TO AMEND/ST PAUL'S RCV - Audio BELOW

On-air date: 
Mon, 11/07/2011
GIVE TO THE MAX IS BACK - for 2011: PLEASE CLICK ON THE APPLICABLE BUTTON IN THE BOX AND HELP US HELP YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR WORLD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS. DONATE TODAY!! And Thank You!

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream and later on Blip.tv or in iTunes or under Archives tab above!

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A reminder for St. Paul Voters: Tuesday is Election Day, when all seven City Council seats and four of seven School Boardseats are up for election under the city’s new Ranked Choice Voting system, allowing you to cast your first-choice, second-choice and, if present, third and fourth-choices for City Council candidates in your ward. We’ve aired discussions among each of five of the contested races for Council over the last four weeks, and those are available by click on the Archives tab above and scrolling down to your particular race. Three of those four shows are also in video under the Archives tab. Our First Segment this week will cover some of the pitfalls of the new system, if you’re not careful. There was no Primary, so all candidates who filed for these offices are on your ballot. The tope four vote-getters among ten School Board candidates will win. RCV does not apply to the School Board race.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What do we mean by corporate personhood – and why is this not a good thing?

Some history:

In 1819, the Supreme Court, in Dartmouth College v. Woodward, recognized corporations as having the same rights as natural persons for the purpose of entering into contracts and enforcing those contracts. Later, in 1886, the Court’s Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad decision (118 U.S. 394 [1886]) recognized corporations as persons for the purposes of the Fourteenth Amendment (states must provide equal protection under the law to all people within their jurisdiction).

Those two rulings have thus provided the century-old underpinnings for a number of subsequent decisions equating corporations with real people, two of the most recent being Buckley v. Valeo, which equates campaign finance with free speech – a true precedent in its own right – followed by last year’s 5-4 Citizens United (Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission) ruling, yanking all restrictions on corporate (and union) campaign monies and allowing unlimited dollars to flow directly to support or defeat candidates, just not to the campaigns themselves.

The 2010 elections demonstrated starkly the fallout from all of these rulings on the make-up of Congress, especially the reversal of the Democratic House majority to Republicans, and of several governorships and state legislative bodies. The best examples of the latter are Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and Florida, and the passage of truly onerous, anti-worker, anti-teacher legislation. Corporate personhood gave life and power to the Koch brothers’ wealth as the primary financing tool of both the Tea Party entities and specific electoral contests in those states.

Presidents and early political figures – including Lincoln, Cleveland [1888], Eisenhower [1958] and the original Progressive, Wisconsin’s Robert LaFollette [in 1897] – plus legal scholars –  have condemned the role of corporations in American political life and in every aspect our economy, many of those luminaries saying that uncontrolled corporations represent serious threats to our nation’s political and economic stability – and still they persist through their economic and political control, mergers, acquisitions, let alone their refusal to heed employee and consumer rights, to push for more.

Now comes an overt movement to reverse all of those rulings by means of a Constitutional amendment and calling itself Move to Amend. The amendment would add language that says Congress and the states can regulate campaign contributions and expenditures, rather than directly address the legal finding that election law denied corporations their right to free speech. Minnesota has its own chapter or branch and we’ll hear more about all of this as Move to Amend becomes one of the siren songs of the Occupy phenomenon. 

David Cobb is National Projects Director of Democracy Unlimited. He is a lawyer, political activist, and engaged citizen. He has sued corporate polluters, lobbied elected officials, run for political office himself, and has been arrested for non-violent civil disobedience. In 2002 David ran for Attorney General of Texas, pledging to use the office to revoke the charters of corporations that repeatedly violate health, safety and environmental laws. He did not win the office, but the Green Party of Texas grew dramatically during his campaign from four local chapters to twenty-six. In 2004, he ran for President of the United States on the Green Party ticket and successfully campaigned for the Ohio recount.

TTT’s ANDY DRISCOLL and MICHELLE ALIMORADI engage local and national advocates on the role of corporations and Move to Amend – after we highlight the practical pitfalls of Ranked Choice Voting in St. Paul tomorrow with our Resident Expert.

GUESTS:

Segment 1:

JEANNE MASSEY – President, FairVote/Minnesota, Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) Advocates

Segment 2:

DAVID COBB – former Presidential Candidate for the US Green Party, National Projects Director of Democracy Unlimited and official spokesperson for MOVE to AMEND

NATHAN JOHN NESS – Minnesota Organizer, MOVE to AMEND


58:53 minutes (53.92 MB)
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TruthToTell, Mon.,Oct 31@9AM: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: VOTE! Wards 5 & 6; Last Week:Ward 1 Candidates-VOTE!

Remember – call and join the conversation – 612-341-0980 – or Tweet us @TTTAndyDriscoll or post on TruthToTell’sFacebook page.

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream and later on Blip.tv or in iTunes

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TruthToTell, Mon.,Oct 31@9AM: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: VOTE! Wards 5 & 6 This Week - KFAI FM 90.3/106.7/KFAI.org

November 8th approaches and the moment of reckoning for candidates will face the city’s the new voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting system. With no primary to whittle the fields to two per race, multiple candidates will vie in a single November general election. Voters may mark their first, second, third and fourth choices until one candidate attains a majority (or substantial plurality) in each of the council races ONLY. Meanwhile, as tradition dictates, the top four vote-getters out of ten candidates will win seats on the school board. (See Wards 5 and 6 ranked-choice sample ballot.) 

TruthToTell is devoting four successive weeks to St. Paul’s elections – with the unabashed goal of getting voters to stop giving their local government(s) election the air and get themselves to the polls November 8th. The unacceptably common 15%-35% turnouts must give way to at least half the eligible electorate showing up to pick their cities’ leadership – in St. Paul, yes, but in several suburban elections as well. We’ve now presented candidates from St. Paul Wards Two, Three and One. This week, we present candidates in the Ward 5 and Ward 6 races. The remaining races have nominal or no opposition for the incumbents. November 7th, the day before the election, Jeanne Massey of FairVote/Minnesota will be on hand to explain the Ranked Choice Voting process, which should no longer require an hour’s worth of discussion.

As with Ward 1 last week, two candidates are competing in each of the two wards – 5 & 6. While the DFL, Green and Libertarian parties have endorsed in most city races, all city offices are NONPARTISAN, so no party ID will be seen next to a candidate’s name. Key issues in the North End’s Ward 5 and the Upper East Side’s Ward 6 is who can best represent the interests of increasingly diverse constituencies. It’s likely safe to say that economic development and housing issues in this lingering recession are probably the key issues in these two wards, along with infrastructure problems.

TTT’s ANDY DRISCOLL and MICHELLE ALIMORADI engage these candidates in conversation about why they should hold their respective offices.

CANDIDATES:

Ward 5:

LEE HELGEN - Incumbent


AMY BRENDMOEN - Challenger; Chamber of Commerce Endorsed

 

 

Ward 6:

DAN BOSTROM - Incumbent; DFL Endorsed


BEE KEVIN XIONG - Challenger; Green Party Endorsed

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TTT1143–Oct 24-StPaulElectionsWard1– Audio HERE; Video HERE

The St. Paul City Council and School Board elections are edging closer. November 8th will tests the city’s the new voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting system for City Council races only. Passed in 2009, and eliminating a primary for a single November general election, voters may mark their first, second, third and fourth choices until one candidate attains a majority (or substantial plurality) in each of the council seats. As has always been the case, the four top vote getters in the school board race will win the available seats in which two of the candidates are incumbents.

This week we speak with three of the four candidates for Ward One. (Ward One ranked-choice sample ballot here.) One – James McEiver – has failed to respond to our invitation.

Starting with the crowded Ward 2 field, TruthToTell has been devoting four successive weeks to St. Paul’s elections – in the fervent hope that voters will stop giving their local government(s) short shrift and get to the polls in numbers higher than the all-too-common 15%-35% turnouts. We’ve now presented candidates from Wards Two and Three. The following week we present candidates from Wards 5 and 6 on the 31st. On November 7th, the day before the election, Jeanne Massey of FairVote/Minnesota will be on hand to explain the Ranked Choice Voting process. The remaining races have nominal or no opposition for the incumbents.

As with Ward 3 last week, four candidates are competing in Ward 1. One is DFL-endorsed in this NONPARTISAN race, another represents the Green Party. Two others are running as independents. Again, no party association accompanies a ballot name in city elections. A key issue in Ward 1 is who can best represent the best interests of a vastly diverse electorate. Furthermore, it is through Ward 1 that a lengthy chunk of the Central Corridor will run. It’s an issue that has divided the African American community and raised hackles on the backs of University businesses – many of them Asian and East African – over the disruptions caused by light rail construction.

Ours is one of the last meetings these candidates will attend. These three will participate in the final face-to-face debate of the season at 7:00 
tomorrow night, Tuesday, Oct. 25th at Mt. Olivet Church,
 451 Central Ave. W., between Dale St. and Western Ave.

The Candidates Committed:

 MELVIN CARTER III – Incumbent (one term); DFL-Endorsed

 JOHNNY HOWARD – Neighborhood Activist (Thomas-Dale/Frogtown); Green Party-endorsed

 ANTHONY FERNANDEZ – Neighborhood Activist and Member, St Paul Planning Commission; Independent


Tags:

TruthToTell Oct 31: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: Wards 5 & 6 This Week - VOTE! - Audio Below.

On-air date: 
Mon, 10/31/2011

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream. This week's show is up on Blip.tv and in Our Archives Above

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

November 8th approaches and the moment of reckoning for candidates will face the city’s the new voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting system. With no primary to whittle the fields to two per race, multiple candidates will vie in a single November general election. Voters may mark their first, second, third and fourth choices until one candidate attains a majority (or substantial plurality) in each of the council races ONLY. Meanwhile, as tradition dictates, the top four vote-getters out of ten candidates will win seats on the school board. (See Wards 5 and 6 ranked-choice sample ballot.) 

TruthToTell devoted four successive weeks to St. Paul’s elections – with the unabashed goal of getting voters to stop giving their local government(s) election the air and get themselves to the polls November 8th. The unacceptably common 15%-35% turnouts must give way to at least half the eligible electorate showing up to pick their cities’ leadership – in St. Paul, yes, but in several suburban elections as well. We’ve now presented candidates from St. Paul Wards Two, Three and One. This week, we present candidates in the Ward 5 and Ward 6 races. The remaining races have nominal or no opposition for the incumbents. November 7th, the day before the election, Jeanne Massey of FairVote/Minnesota will be on hand to explain the Ranked Choice Voting process, which should no longer require an hour’s worth of discussion.

Two candidates are competing in each of the two wards – 5 & 6. While the DFL, Green and Libertarian parties have endorsed in most city races, all city offices are NONPARTISAN, so no party ID will be seen next to a candidate’s name. Key issues in the North End’s Ward 5 and the Upper East Side’s Ward 6 is who can best represent the interests of increasingly diverse constituencies. It’s likely safe to say that economic development and housing issues in this lingering recession are probably the key issues in these two wards, along with infrastructure problems.

TTT’s ANDY DRISCOLL and MICHELLE ALIMORADI engage these candidates in conversation about why they should hold their respective offices.

CANDIDATES:

Ward 5:

LEE HELGEN - Incumbent


AMY BRENDMOEN - Challenger; Chamber of Commerce Endorsed

 

 

Ward 6:

DAN BOSTROM - Incumbent; DFL Endorsed


BEE KEVIN XIONG - Challenger; Green Party Endorsed



58:00 minutes (53.1 MB)
Tags:

TruthToTell, Mon.,Oct 24@9AM: VOTE! - ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: Ward 1 This Week; Last Week, Oct 17: Ward 3 - VOTE!

Remember – call and join the conversation – 612-341-0980 – or Tweet us @TTTAndyDriscoll or post on TruthToTell’s Facebook page.

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell is now seen live on Livestream and later on Blip.tv or in iTunes

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TruthToTell, Mon.,Oct 24@9AM: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: VOTE! Ward 1 This Week - KFAI FM 90.3/106.7/KFAI.org

The St. Paul City Council and School Board elections are edging closer when November 8th tests the city’s the new voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting system, passed in 2009, eliminating a primary for a single November general election. Voters may mark their first, second, third and fourth choices until one candidate attains a majority (or substantial plurality) in each of the council seats and four top vote getters in the school board race. This week we speak with three of the four candidates for Ward One. (Ward One ranked-choice sample ballot here.) One – James McEiver – has failed to respond to our invitation.

Starting with the crowded Ward 2 field, TruthToTell has been devoting four successive weeks to St. Paul’s elections – in the fervent hope that voters will stop giving their local government(s) short shrift and get to the polls in numbers higher than the all-too-common 15%-35% turnouts. We’ve now presented candidates from Wards Two and Three. The following week we present candidates from Wards 5 and 6 on the 31st. On November 7th, the day before the election, Jeanne Massey of FairVote/Minnesota will be on hand to explain the Ranked Choice Voting process. The remaining races have nominal or no opposition for the incumbents.

As with Ward 3 last week, four candidates are competing in Ward 1. One is DFL-endorsed in this NONPARTISAN race, another represents the Green Party. Two others are running as independents. Again, no party association accompanies a ballot name in city elections. A key issue in Ward 1 is who can best represent the best interests of a vastly diverse electorate. Furthermore, it is through Ward 1 that a lengthy chunk of the Central Corridor will run. It’s an issue that has divided the African American community and raised hackles on the backs of University businesses – many of them Asian and East African – over the disruptions caused by light rail construction.

Ours may be one of the last meetings among these candidates.

The Candidates Committed:

 MELVIN CARTER III – Incumbent (one term); DFL-Endorsed

 JOHNNY HOWARD – Neighborhood Activist (Thomas-Dale/Frogtown); Green Party-endorsed

 ANTHONY FERNANDEZ – Neighborhood Activist and Member, St Paul Planning Commission; Independent

 

INVITED BUT NOT RESPONDING: JAMES MICHAEL MCEIVER. Mr. McEiver's listed number has been disconnected; he does not respond to his email messages. He WILL appear on the ballot.

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TruthToTell, Oct 17: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: VOTE! Ward 3  - AUDIO ONLY HERE - VIDEO HERE - VOTE!

(Ward Three ranked-choice sample ballot here.)

Ward 3’s Pat Harris is departing, opening up that race in way it hasn’t for nearly 20 years given that Harris’ predecessor was his brother, Mike. The only race without an incumbent means a high-stakes scramble for Harris’ successor, given his penchant for consistently supporting his old friend Mayor Chris Coleman’s agenda. Deep schism has surfaced within the DFL over this seat, despite the official nonpartisan nature of city elections.

Four candidates are competing in Ward 3. Three of the four have old DFL ties, but just one is endorsed in this NONPARTISAN race. The DFL endorsement convention was something of a donnybrook of “outsider” involvement, including Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and Mayor Chris Coleman, who lives on St. Paul’s West Side.  No party association accompanies a ballot name in city elections. A key issue in this race should be the future of the Ford Assembly Plant site, which goes vacant very soon after nearly 88 years of operation with few stoppages. Of all the city’s council districts, Ward 3 boasts the highest per capita income and remains a slight swing district politically, able to still elect a more conservative candidate when it suits the electorate.

JOHN MANNILLO – Business Owner; Downtown Redeveloper, Preservationist; Independent

TYLOR SLINGER – Banking Communications Specialist; Political Activist; Libertarian Endorsed

EVE STEIN – High School Teacher, Debate Coach; Neighborhood Activist; Independent

CHRIS TOLBERT – Hennepin County Attorney; DFL-Endorsed

 


Tags:

TruthToTell Oct 24: ST. PAUL ELECTIONS: VOTE! Ward 1 This Week VOTE!

On-air date: 
Mon, 10/24/2011

Watch us from Studio 5! TruthToTell on Blip.tv or in Our Video Archives

HELP US BRING YOU THESE IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST – PLEASE DONATE HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The St. Paul City Council and School Board elections are edging closer. November 8th will tests the city’s the new voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting system for City Council races only. Passed in 2009, and eliminating a primary for a single November general election, voters may mark their first, second, third and fourth choices until one candidate attains a majority (or substantial plurality) in each of the council seats. As has always been the case, the four top vote getters in the school board race will win the available seats in which two of the candidates are incumbents.

This week we speak with three of the four candidates for Ward One. (Ward One ranked-choice sample ballot here.) One – James McEiver – has failed to respond to our invitation.

Starting with the crowded Ward 2 field, TruthToTell has been devoting four successive weeks to St. Paul’s elections – in the fervent hope that voters will stop giving their local government(s) short shrift and get to the polls in numbers higher than the all-too-common 15%-35% turnouts. We’ve now presented candidates from Wards Two and Three. The following week we present candidates from Wards 5 and 6 on the 31st. On November 7th, the day before the election, Jeanne Massey of FairVote/Minnesota will be on hand to explain the Ranked Choice Voting process. The remaining races have nominal or no opposition for the incumbents.

As with Ward 3 last week, four candidates are competing in Ward 1. One is DFL-endorsed in this NONPARTISAN race, another represents the Green Party. Two others are running as independents. Again, no party association accompanies a ballot name in city elections. A key issue in Ward 1 is who can best represent the best interests of a vastly diverse electorate. Furthermore, it is through Ward 1 that a lengthy chunk of the Central Corridor will run. It’s an issue that has divided the African American community and raised hackles on the backs of University businesses – many of them Asian and East African – over the disruptions caused by light rail construction.

Ours is one of the last meetings these candidates will attend. These three will participate in the final face-to-face debate of the season at 7:00 
tomorrow night, Tuesday, Oct. 25th at Mt. Olivet Church,
 451 Central Ave. W., between Dale St. and Western Ave.

The Candidates Committed:

 MELVIN CARTER III – Incumbent (one term); DFL-Endorsed

 JOHNNY HOWARD – Neighborhood Activist (Thomas-Dale/Frogtown); Green Party-endorsed

ANTHONY FERNANDEZ – Neighborhood Activist and Member, St Paul Planning Commission; Independent

NOT RESPONDING: JAMES MICHAEL MCEIVER. Mr. McEiver's listed number has been disconnected; he does not respond to his email messages. He WILL appear on the ballot.


53:29 minutes (48.97 MB)
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