This is a list of Minnesota politicians who currently hold office or are running for office, and who have publicly opposed reforming the Minneapolis Police Department. It also collects instances where those politicians have lied about attempts to reform the police, as further demonstration of their opposition to reform.

Much of this table is based around the 2021 Minneapolis ballot Question 2. If passed, this would have changed the city charter to remove a required minimum number officers, a minimum funding level, and place MPD as part of a larger Department of Public Safety. Very few cities in the US have those required minimums, and many cities and states have a DPS. The question did not change police funding or staffing levels and did not eliminate the chief of police position. This was a necessary and teeny, tiny first step towards real reform. If you opposed this change, then you would certainly oppose any of the real reforms that are needed to improve MPD’s behavior. Opposing Question 2 is equivalent to being opposed to police reform. Politicians’ stances on Q2 give us a clear window into whether they actually support reform, or just like saying the word.

NameHeld office or candidacyOpposed ReformsLies
Tim WalzGovernor
and 2022 candidate
Opposed Q2Lied – “it’s fraught with peril to just use a slogan like ‘defund the police.'”
Lied – “It’s been distilled down to this: defund police or fund police”
Amy KlobucharUS SenatorOpposed Q2Lied – “has also repeatedly stated her opposition to defunding the police”
Tina SmithUS SenatorOpposed Q2
Angie CraigUS House RepOpposed Q2Lied – “[Q2] could lead to the dismissal of Chief Medaria Arradondo”
Jacob FreyMPLS MayorOpposed Q2

Fighting MN DHR consent decree
Lied – The mayor campaigned that he banned no-knock warrants, but he didn’t. As a result, Amir Locke was murdered by MPD during a no-knock raid in February, 2022.

The mayor’s PAC, AllOfMpls, spread an unbelievable amount of lies about Q2 during the election.
Linea PalmisanoMPLS City CouncilOpposed Q2Lied – “[Palmisano] claims to have ‘supported the creation of the Office of Violence Prevention,’ but voted against the budget amendment that funded its creation.”
Lisa GoodmanMPLS City CouncilOpposed Q2
Michael RainvilleMPLS City CouncilOpposed Q2
LaTrisha VetawMPLS City CouncilOpposed Q2
Emily KoskiMPLS City CouncilOpposed Q2
Yusra Arab2022 candidate for MN House 63AOpposed Q2
RepublicansManyAllLiterally everything
https://smokingonabike.com/mpd-reform-opponents
Last updated: 12 June 2022


Please feel free to use & reproduce in any form, with or without attribution.