Six candidates for Minneapolis City Council sought endorsement from the Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) for this fall’s election. Four received DSA endorsements this week: Aisha Chughtai, Jason Chavez, Soren Stevenson and Robin Wonsley. Two did not: Marcus Mills & Emilio Rodríguez.
Minneapolis Times has obtained the endorsement questionnaires for all six prospective endorsees, which contains the candidates responses to 52 policy related questions ranging from police funding to the HERC facility to the removal of I-94 in favor of a boulevard.
Download the PDF’s:
Ward 2: Robin Wonsley (secured endorsement)
Ward 3: Marcus Mills (no endorsement)
Ward 3: Emilio Rodríguez (no endorsement)
Ward 8: Soren Stevenson (secured endorsement)
Ward 9: Jason Chavez (secured endorsement)
Ward 10: Aisha Chughtai (secured endorsement)
Below: Read the description from the DSA explaining their endorsement process:
Twin Cities DSA 2025 Minneapolis City Council Endorsement Questionnaire
Thank you for your interest in seeking Twin Cities DSA’s endorsement. Application for our chapter’s endorsement includes completion of this questionnaire and receiving motions of support from 3% of chapter members in good standing. Submission of this questionnaire is required by February 7th, and support from chapter members must be collected by February 14th. Please contact electoral@twincitiesdsa.org to receive the for for collecting member support if you have not already. All answers to this questionnaire, except for questions regarding personal contact info, will be made available to the TCDSA membership. Questionnaires will not be released publicly.
This form is the Standard Questionnaire that all candidates must fill out. Answers to all questions are required. There is an explanation section for every yes/no question, but these explanations are optional. For both required and optional explanations, please keep your response to under 150 words. You can also read a PDF version of the questionnaire here.
The Electoral Committee of TCDSA will follow up with you on the next steps once these first two criteria are met, including scheduling a forum with TCDSA members and details about the endorsement meeting.
For any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact the Electoral Committee at electoral@twincitiesdsa.org.
TCDSA Electoral Organizing Principles (The full text of the Principles can be read here):
We find ourselves faced with multiple and intersecting crises, exacerbated by nativist, racist and anti-labor forces. These issues will not be solved by continuing the failed policies of neoliberalism, nor by the cruelty of the capitalist system, nor can electoralism be our sole agenda. The broad struggles of the global working class, across every point of injustice, will only be righted through the collective efforts of all, working in solidarity towards the change we need, against every effort to divide us. Only through this mass organizing will we achieve a truly democratic society, where an empowered working class is centered, and the needs of people are acknowledged and addressed, rather than shut out and ignored.
Typical electoral campaigns are candidate-centric, think little of the residents they seek to represent, exhaust staff and volunteers, and are short-lived by design. Campaigns endorsed by TCDSA instead must reflect our commitment to change, and further the values of mass organizing while seeking to reshape institutions from within. More than just rhetorical alignment, their campaigns must be run cooperatively with staff and volunteers, and they must actively engage with the needs of their communities. They must not just mobilize people to vote, but activate people to both support their campaign and hold them to account, to organize within their own community, and to stay engaged beyond the election. The candidates we support must seek to not just represent their constituents, but to serve and uplift them.
Can you also post the responses for the mayor, park board and BET DSA candidates?
We don’t have them…yet