The city of
Saint Paul, Minnesota held an election on November 2, 2021, to elect the
mayor. It was held with
ranked-choice voting Ranked-choice voting may be used as a synonym for:
* Ranked voting, a term used for any voting system in which voters are asked to rank candidates in order of preference
* Instant-runoff voting (IRV), a specific ranked voting system with single-w ...
, and there was no
primary election
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...
. Few candidates filed to challenge incumbent mayor
Melvin Carter III, and he easily won a second term with over 60% of first-preference votes.
Background
Incumbent Mayor
Melvin Carter III announced he would seek a second term as mayor on January 26, 2021.
During his first term, Mayor Carter presided over the unrest in the Twin Cities after the murder of
George Floyd
George Perry Floyd Jr. (October 14, 1973 – May 25, 2020) was an African-American man who was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during an arrest made after a store clerk suspected Floyd may have used a counterfeit twe ...
in
Minneapolis; making policing and public safety top of mind for voters in Saint Paul. Additionally, voters were concerned about issues like homelessness, a possible recession, and the ongoing
Covid-19 Pandemic.
Carter campaigned on achievements like an initiative to provide newborns with a college savings account,
a pilot program that distributed guaranteed income for some low-income families,
and rethinking public safety.
Despite entering the race unopposed, Carter was facing several opponents by the close of the filing deadline on August 10, 2021.
In total, Carter faced seven challengers, including: Paul Langenfeld, vice president of the Board of Directors of Highland District Council and founder of a non-profit that caters to people with disabilities; Dino Guerin, former St. Paul District Fire Chief St. Paul City Councilman and Ramsey County commissioner;
Dora Jones-Robinson, the executive director of Mentoring Young Adults and founder of Guns Down St. Paul;
Miki Frost, father of five and founder of "Truce Center";
Scott Wergin, a contractor;
Bill Hosko, a downtown coffee shop proprietor art gallery owner and architectural illustrator;
and Abu Nayeem, a data analyst who had previously run for St. Paul City Council in 2019.
Most of Carter's opponents supported lowering crime rates
and implementing better social systems in the city of St. Paul.
Carter's opponents failed to match him in endorsements—the mayor won the Saint Paul
Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party's endorsement on July 18, 2021,
as well as endorsements from Minnesota Governor
Tim Walz and Lt. Governor
Peggy Flannagan—but Paul Langenfeld was able to self-finance
his campaign to match Mayor Carter's.
Candidates
Declared
*
Melvin Carter III, incumbent mayor (
DFL)
*Miki Frost, mentor for troubled youth (
Independent)
*Dino Guerin, investigative assistant at the
Ramsey County Sheriff's Department, former Ramsey County commissioner, former Saint Paul District Fire Chief, and former city councillor
*Bill Hosko, artist,
cafe owner, and perennial candidate
*Dora Jones-Robinson,
gun control
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms by civilians.
Most countries have a restrictive firearm guiding policy, with on ...
activist
*Paul Langenfeld, personal care attendant and former vice president of the
Highland Park district council
*Abu Nayeem, data analyst and community organizer
*Scott Evans Wergin, biochemist
Declined
*Pat Harris, former city councillor and candidate for mayor in
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
(
DFL) ''(endorsed Carter)''
Endorsements
Results
Notes
References
{{2021 United States elections
Saint Paul mayoral
Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
Mayoral elections in Saint Paul, Minnesota