Hear that noise, like egg shells breaking? It’s the mad scramble among political candidates in St. Paul’s Frogtown and Summit-University neighborhoods to assemble delegates for the special DFL endorsing convention in Ward 1 this Saturday, July 27. The ward’s party insiders will assemble to endorse a candidate for city council seat recently vacated by Melvin Carter III.
Election filings for St. Paul office don’t open until the end of July, but the ranked-choice format in the November election is likely to inspire a wide cast of candidates. There will be no political primary, so anyone who files to run will be on the ballot.
A new council member will be seated after the November election and serve two years. The ward represents Frogtown / Thomas-Dale, Summit-University, and neighboring areas such as Lexington-Hamline and Snelling-Hamline.
The St. Paul GOP City Committee has endorsed Paul Holmgren.
Here’s how the DFL side of the ballot is looking so far:
JOHNNY HOWARD
Community organizer and retired autoworker Johnny Howard ran against Carter two years ago but was unable to unseat him. He received just under 28 percent of the vote, with Carter garnering about 60 percent in the three-way race that included Realtor Anthony Fernandez.
Howard, who has said that the city comes down too hard on landlords with its property inspections, was part of a team of plaintiffs that last year filed a federal complaint against the city, claiming housing discrimination and “forced gentrification.” His campaign Facebook page is here.
NOEL NIX
Carter’s legislative aide, Noel Nix, holds a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, and he’s befriended many within City Hall, including folks in the mayor’s administration. Carter’s mother, Ramsey County Commissioner Toni Carter, is his campaign chair. His campaign website is here, and his campaign Facebook page is here.
Nix, who is probably the most “labor endorsed” candidate, recently received the support of AFSCME Council 5 and Teamsters Local 120, which represents 11,000 members working for 300 organizations, including the Saint Paul Department of Public Works.
MARK VOERDING
Mark Voerding, past president of the District 7 Planning Council and former member of the District 8 Planning Council, is a graduate of Hamline University with a masters degree in public administration.
He’s been active on Central Corridor planning issues and district council funding issues for years, including the Selby Avenue Task Force. He works for County Commissioner Janice Rettman.
As a county employee stationed in City Hall, Voerding has some strong opinions on what the city could be doing better. He told the Stonewall DFL: “Of late, St. Paul has a
poor record of inclusiveness in contracting and follow-up procedures. For this reason Ramsey County has separated from the joint purchasing office. That must be fixed.”
KAZOUA KONG-THAO
Kazoua Kong-Thao, who served on the school board for eight years herself, is a former school board chair and treasurer. She has strong ties to the Hmong community, and counts on the support of state Sen. Foung Hawj, DFL-St. Paul, and school board candidate Chue Vue, among others.
Those others, listed on her campaign website, include former state Rep. Matt Entenza, Ramsey County Commissioner Jim McDonough, St. Paul Schools Board Chair Jean O’Connell, St. Paul Schools Board member John Broderick, St. Paul Schools Board member Keith Hardy, St. Paul Schools Board member Anne Carroll, and Roy Magnuson, a St. Paul school teacher.
MATT HILL
Matt Hill, a Central High School graduate, works for the Minnesota Historical Society as a project manager for its Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. He also serves on the city’s influential Historic Preservation Commission.
Through Rotary International, he earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. Hill is one of six siblings, according to his candidate website www.votematthill.com, not to be confused with his candidate Facebook page.
Here’s a Podcast interview with Hill on Streets.MN.
DAI THAO
Dai Thao, an information technology professional, is known for his work in Hmong organizing circles with groups such as the uber-liberal, sometimes fiery TakeAction Minnesota. His candidate committee includes campaign fundraiser Bee Kevin Xiong, who ran for a council seat against City Council Member Dan Bostrom two years ago. Dai Thao also served as co-chair of state Rep. Rena Moran’s first campaign, and has been active with progressive groups such as the interfaith housing advocacy coalition ISAIAH. He has been endorsed by St. Paul Firefighters Local 21 and TakeAction. His campaign website is www.daithao.org.
DEBBIE MONTGOMERY
Former St. Paul police commander Debbie Montgomery served a single four-year term on the St. Paul City Council, representing Ward 1 until Melvin Carter III defeated her in November 2007. With help from then-Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher’s political team, she amassed a campaign war chest (boosted by suburban donors) of more than $127,000, making her defeat to Carter the priciest council election in city history.
She is part of the group of plaintiffs who sued the Metropolitan Council in federal court over light rail construction, claiming a lack of an adequate business mitigation plan. She also campaigned for the inclusion of three “missing” stops that were ultimately added in to the light rail line at Western, Victoria and Hamline avenues.