Ellison has two challengers for Ward 5: one a familiar foe, the other new to politics
Incumbent Jeremiah Ellison, center, is being challenged by Victor Martinez and Phillip “OMac” Peterson.
By David Pierini, Editor
Jeremiah Ellison, who has held the Ward 5 seat on the Minneapolis City Council for five years, likes to say “Governing is a dialogue we must have together.”
Now Ellison shifts to something less congenial, a re-election campaign where his two challengers are trying to portray his penchant for progressive policies as Minneapolis voters will get the final word on Nov. 7.
Ellison will face Victor Martinez, a local pastor, who is in his second campaign to unseat Ellison. They are joined by Phillip “OMac” Peterson, a relative newcomer to Minneapolis who hopes his ideas for city services and personal story of change will appeal to Ward 5 residents.
Members of the City Council are normally elected to four-year terms. However, a 2010 state law requires Minneapolis to hold elections after a census and related changes to ward boundaries.
The Ward 5 seat keeps the sitter on the edge. Development projects, including a proposed light rail route, will bring changes to North Minneapolis and Ellison has had to balance the potential of transformative investment with fears from residents and business owners that they will be priced out.
There are also lingering poverty and public safety issues following an economy-crippling pandemic and the police murder of George Floyd. An uptick in violent crime took place as officers were leaving the force following what turned into a global uprising.
Through it all, Ellison has pushed for big changes in public safety, forsaking a police-only model with holistic solutions, like mental health crisis teams and city-wide violence prevention programs. Ellison also championed affordable housing through the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, 4d Tax Incentive and rent-control measures that died during a controversial vote where three of its proponents, including Ellison, missed a meeting to celebrate the Muslim holiday of Eid.
“When I first ran for office, I kept hearing about the deficits of North Minneapolis,” Ellison said during a League of Women Voters candidates forum in August. “I was born and raised here. I know this community. I know how much we have in Ingenuity, how much creativity, how much resilience, and I wanted to tell that story at City Hall as well.”
The campaign of Martinez, a Henry High School grad who has lived on the Northside for 20 years, is a drumbeat against criticisms against Ellison, especially when it comes to policing. As he did two years ago, Martinez characterizes Ellison’s vision for public safety as “defund the police,” a rallying cry heard after Floyd’s death.
With the city under two consent decrees to clean up the city’s police department, Martinez stressed the urgency to address ongoing crime. He continues to advocate for more police and pushing for greater transparency and accountability in how they operate.
“I believe in an ecosystem of public safety and I believe (it) should be empowered with as much funds as possible to make these changes and transformations,” Martinez said. “He (Ellison) doesn’t want them to have the money.”
Ellison said meeting consent decree goals will be expensive but believes compliance can be achieved within five years. “I want to go a step further,” Ellison said. “I want to make sure we do not slip back into old habits once the consent decree is over.”
Martinez said Ellison’s advocacy for rent control will drive away development. He also criticized the incumbent for not being available to Ward residents. Martinez promises a response to questions or complaints within 24 hours.
Ellison said he and his office continue to work on improving dialogue with constituents. He holds weekly office hours, and hosts and co-hosts community meetings and quarterly town halls.
A Virginia native, Peterson slipped into the race just before the filing deadline. A landscaper, self-proclaimed gaming nerd and part-time bakery employee, Peterson wants to improve city services such as snow removal and filling in potholes.
He was a troubled youth who made bad decisions he began to rectify in his 30s, Peterson said. He is a renter and works hard to make ends meet, which he believes voters can relate to.
Peterson said he would like to change the “food desert” status of his ward and, like Martinez, believes in more cops on the street.
“I don’t understand why we don’t have some officers who live in the community and we know by name,” Peterson said. “The style of policing needs to change. Rather than defunding, why don’t we re-distribute the funds into areas that create a new type of officer, someone who specifically handles mental health issues so that we’re not bringing officers with guns into places? We need to get back to community policing.”