Kale Severson

This page was current at the end of the official's last term in office covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Kale Severson

Nonpartisan

Prior offices

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board District 2

Successor: Becka Thompson

---

Report an officeholder change

Education

High school

North High School

Personal

Profession

Coach and mentor

Contact

Personal website

float:right;
border:1px solid #FFB81F;
background-color: white;
width: 250px;
font-size: .9em;
margin-bottom:0px;

} .infobox p { margin-bottom: 0; } .widget-row { display: inline-block; width: 100%; margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px; } .widget-row.heading { font-size: 1.2em; } .widget-row.value-only { text-align: center; background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.value-only.white { background-color: #f9f9f9; } .widget-row.value-only.black { background-color: #f9f9f9; color: black; } .widget-row.Democratic { background-color: #003388; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Republican { background-color: red; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Independent, .widget-row.Nonpartisan, .widget-row.Constitution { background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Libertarian { background-color: #f9d334; color: black; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Green { background-color: green; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-key { width: 43%; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; vertical-align: top; font-weight: bold; } .widget-value { width: 57%; float: right; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; word-wrap: break-word; } .widget-img { width: 150px; display: block; margin: auto; } .clearfix { clear: both; }

Kale Severson was a member of the City of Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board in Minnesota, representing District 2. Severson assumed office on January 1, 2018. Severson left office on December 31, 2021.

Although park and recreation board elections are officially nonpartisan, Severson was endorsed by the DFL.

Severson was previously a DFL candidate for District 58 of the Minnesota State Senate in 2010.

Biography

Email [email protected] to notify us of updates to this biography.

Severson's experience includes work as a coach and athletic director for North High School and Nellie Stone Johnson Community School, a health educator at NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center, a youth counselor at St. Joseph's Home for Children, and a grant coordinator for the Neighborhood Hub.

Elections

2017

See also: Municipal elections in Minneapolis, Minnesota (2017) and Mayoral election in Minneapolis, Minnesota (2017)

Minneapolis, Minnesota, held a general election for mayor, all 13 seats on the city council, both elected members of the board of estimate and taxation, and all nine members of the park and recreation board on November 7, 2017. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was August 15, 2017.

Incumbents ran for re-election to all but two of the city council seats. Ward 3 Councilman Jacob Frey filed to run for mayor instead, and Ward 8 Councilwoman Elizabeth Glidden opted not to run for re-election. Kale Severson defeated Mike Tate in the general election for the District 2 seat on the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, District 2 General Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Kale Severson	56.96%	5,089
Mike Tate	42.29%	3,778
Write-in votes	0.75%	67
Total Votes		8,934
Source: Minneapolis Elections & Voter Services, "2017 Minneapolis Election Results," accessed November 22, 2017

Click [show] on the right for information about other elections in which this candidate ran.
2010 See also: Minnesota State Senate elections, 2010 Severson's opponents in the August 10 primary were Troy Parker and incumbent Linda Higgins. Higgins advanced to the general election.

Campaign themes

2017

Severson's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

“	Grow Our Own People from our community deserve good union jobs in our park system. That’s why I will develop and implement a jobs pipeline for residents to be able to get work within the communities where they live and so park employees have a vested interest in the communities where they work. Green Zone Our parks should be true green spaces, and we must be a leader in novel ways to fight global warming even as our federal government turns a blind eye. Our buildings should be green, using solar energy and geothermal heating and cooling. An investment in green technology now will have high dividends in the immediate future, including jobs, funding, and improved health for all. I will lead the fight to make this happen. Inclusion All should be welcomed at our parks. I will lead on changing the culture within our northside recs so that all lgbtq youth will be affirmed and welcomed. And change programming so that girls have equal opportunity to access great sports and rec options as boys. Tax Steward Your tax dollars support our parks. I will fight to make sure they are spent responsibly and efficiently on evidence based programming that makes a real difference in our community, true conservation efforts, and improved infrastructure. Violence Prevention We know that the more involved youth are with concerned adults and engaging activities the less likely they are to become victims or perpetrators of violence. We must increase programming to address youth violence in our community. I will call for a full time Youthline Coordinator in all six Northside year round parks. Community Space If parks are to be true community spaces, neighborhood groups and other nonprofits should be able to use meeting space for free during regular staffing hours as long as no rec activities are in that space. This is an easy and equitable way to help build community.	”
—Kale Severson's campaign website, (2017)

Endorsements

2017

Severson received endorsements from the following in 2017:

• AFL-CIO-Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation
• AFSCME Minnesota Council 5
• Minneapolis Professional Employees Association
• Minnesota DFL
• Minnesota Young DFL
• Our Revolution Twin Cities
• SEIU Minnesota State Council
• Sierra Club
• Minnesota Sen. Bobby Joe Champion
• Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar
• Minneapolis School Board chair Rebecca Gagnon
• Minneapolis School Board vice chair Kim Ellison
• Minneapolis School Board member KerryJo Felder
• Minneapolis School Board member Ira Jourdain

See also

Minneapolis, Minnesota	Minnesota	Municipal government	Other local coverage

External links

   .contact_entity {font-size: 1.5em ;margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}
   .contact_office { margin-top: 0.3em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}
   .external_links_table { width: auto !important; }
   @media (max-width:600px) {
       .contact_entity {font-size: 1.0em ;margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-right: 0.5em;}
       .contact_office { font-size: 0.8 em; margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}  
   }

Search Google News for this topic

Personal

Website