St. Paul, Minnesota municipal elections, 2015
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The city of St. Paul, Minnesota, held elections for city council on November 3, 2015. Because the city uses instant-runoff voting, there was no primary election. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was August 11, 2015. All seven city council seats were up for election.[1]
Five incumbents ran for re-election. Ward 2 councilmember Dave Thune and Kathy Lantry of Ward 7 were the two incumbents who did not seek re-election. One incumbent, Chris Tolbert, was unopposed in his re-election bid. Jane Prince, running to succeed Lantry in Ward 7, was also unopposed.
Rebecca Noecker and Darren Tobolt were the top two candidates for the Ward 2 seat with no clear winner from the first-choice ballots on November 3.[2] Noecker won the race against Tobolt after election officials tallied second-choice votes from all ballots.
The open seat race in Ward 2 has attracted the most media attention. Candidates in that race offered differing views on how transportation should be improved along an important road. The issue of adding parking meters to a main downtown roadway also prompted discussion. Read more about those issues below.
City council
Candidate list
Ward 1
November 3 General election candidates:
- Trahern Jeen Crews
- Dai Thao
- Incumbent Thao was first elected in 2013.
Ward 2
Note: Incumbent Dave Thune did not run for re-election.
November 3 General election candidates:
Ward 3
November 3 General election candidates:
- Chris Tolbert - Incumbent Tolbert was first elected in 2011.
Ward 4
November 3 General election candidates:
- Tom Goldstein
- Russ Stark - Incumbent Stark was first elected in 2007.
Ward 5
November 3 General election candidates:
- Amy Brendmoen - Incumbent Brendmoen was first elected in 2011.
- David J. Glass
- David Sullivan-Nightengale
Ward 6
November 3 General election candidates:
- Dan Bostrom - Incumbent Bostrom was first elected in 1995.
- Kevin T. Bradley
- Edward Davis
Ward 7
Note: Incumbent Kathy Lantry did not run for re-election.
November 3 General election candidates:
Election results
| St. Paul City Council Ward 1 General Election, 2015 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Dai Thao Incumbent |
84.2% | 2,503 | |
| Trahern Jeen Crews | 14% | 416 | |
| Write-in votes | 1.8% | 54 | |
| Total Votes | 2,973 | ||
| Source: Ramsey County, Minnesota, "Resolution: RES 15-1989," November 14, 2015 | |||
This is the first round of voting. To view subsequent rounds, click the [show] button next to that round.
| St. Paul City Council Ward 2, 2015, Round 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Transfer |
| Rebecca Noecker - Most votes | 41.2% | 2,390 | 391 |
| Darren Tobolt | 38% | 2,207 | 236 |
| Bill Hosko - Eliminated | 14.5% | 840 | −840 |
| Pat Fearing - Eliminated | 1.9% | 110 | −110 |
| Sharon Anderson - Eliminated | 1.6% | 93 | −94 |
| Michael C. Johnson - Eliminated | 1.3% | 75 | −76 |
| Write-in votes | 0.3% | 19 | −19 |
| Suspended ballots | 1.2% | 70 | 0 |
| Exhausted | 1,209 | 1,139 | |
| Total Votes | 7,013 | 627 | |
| Note: Negative numbers in the transfer total are due to exhaustion by overvotes. | |||
This is the final round of voting. To view previous rounds, click the [show] button next to that round.
| St. Paul City Council Ward 2, 2015, Final Round | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Transfer |
| Rebecca Noecker - Winner | 53.2% | 2,782 | 0 |
| Darren Tobolt - Eliminated | 46.8% | 2,444 | 0 |
| Bill Hosko | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Pat Fearing | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Sharon Anderson | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Michael C. Johnson | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Write-in votes | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Exhausted | 0 | 0 | |
| Total Votes | 5,226 | 0 | |
| Note: Negative numbers in the transfer total are due to exhaustion by overvotes. | |||
| St. Paul City Council Ward 4 General Election, 2015 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Russ Stark Incumbent |
61.4% | 3,293 | |
| Tom Goldstein | 38% | 2,039 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.7% | 35 | |
| Total Votes | 5,367 | ||
| Source: Ramsey County, Minnesota, "Resolution: RES 15-1989," November 14, 2015 | |||
| St. Paul City Council Ward 5 General Election, 2015 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Amy Brendmoen Incumbent |
56.2% | 2,202 | |
| David J. Glass | 37.9% | 1,485 | |
| David Sullivan-Nightengale | 5.5% | 215 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.4% | 14 | |
| Total Votes | 3,916 | ||
| Source: Ramsey County, Minnesota, "Resolution: RES 15-1989," November 14, 2015 | |||
| St. Paul City Council Ward 6 General Election, 2015 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Dan Bostrom Incumbent |
73.8% | 1,571 | |
| Edward Davis | 13.6% | 290 | |
| Kevin T. Bradley | 11.8% | 251 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.8% | 16 | |
| Total Votes | 2,128 | ||
| Source: Ramsey County, Minnesota, "Resolution: RES 15-1989," November 14, 2015 | |||
Election rules
- See also: Instant-runoff voting
Municipal elections in St. Paul are held using a system known as instant-runoff voting. In an IRV system, voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives an overall majority of first preferences, the candidates with the fewest votes are eliminated one by one and their votes are transferred according to their second and third preferences (and so on) and then all votes are retallied, until one candidate achieves a majority.
Issues
Transportation
The most highly-contested race this cycle took place in District 2, where six candidates were vying to replace outgoing council member Dave Thune. Five of the six candidates made transportation a large part of their campaign platforms. Candidates disagreed over the best way to improve transit along West Seventh Street, the ward's main transportation artery. Parking meters on Grand Avenue, another major roadway, prompted similar disagreements.
Five of the six candidates in Ward 2 proposed a number of solutions to travel along West Seventh Street. Noecker preferred a form of rapid transit bus service, while Tobolt said he would look at making the road more walkable. Hosko was a firm opponent of plans to add streetcars to the road and instead supports a light rail plan along a different corridor. Fearing stated his belief that any streetcars or light rail would turn West Seventh Street into a road with only one lane in each direction and reiterated his support for "a couple more bus routes, or do something a little more futuristic, like a monorail." Johnson, on the other hand, stated that no improvements needed to be made and that the existing bus service along West Seventh Street already worked. Anderson did not have a public position in this area.[3]
Two of the candidates, Noecker and Tobolt, did not come out in direct opposition of adding to parking meters to Grand Avenue, but decried the decision-making process. Noecker's criticism had to due with a lack of public input, while Tobolt agreed and also indicated a desire to make sure any money spent in those meters went back to the community rather than the city's general fund. The three other candidates to publicly state a view - Hosko, Fearing and Johnson - all strongly opposed the implementation of parking meters along the street. Anderson did not express an opinion on the parking meters.[3]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'St. Paul' Minnesota Election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Minnesota Secretary of State - Important election dates
- Minnesota Secretary of State - Official candidate list
Footnotes
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Election Results," accessed September 17, 2021
- ↑ Twin Cities Pioneer Press, "5 on St. Paul City Council keep seats; Ward 2 a toss-up," November 4, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 TwinCities.com, "St. Paul City Council: 6 candidates vie to replace Dave Thune in Ward 2," October 3, 2015
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