Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey planning to run for reelection
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey confirmed Tuesday morning that he is planning to run for re-election in 2021.
Frey, 39, was elected mayor in 2017, defeating former Mayor Betsy Hodges and 14 other candidates. Speaking Tuesday with Dave Lee on WCCO Radio, Frey said he has yet to formally announce his plans to run for re-election, but he will be on the Nov. 2, 2021 ticket.
"I love this job even though it has been a really hard year. My plan is still to run next year. I just feel this deep-seated responsibility to get the city through this," he said.
Minneapolis has not only been embroiled in economic and health crises fueled by the coronavirus pandemic and civil unrest after the police-involved death of George Floyd, but also a bloody year and a rash of gun violence that has led to 77 homicides and hundreds more shot.
Floyd's death on May 25 sparked intense protests and rioting that led to the destruction of hundreds of properties around in the Twin Cities, with East Lake Street in south Minneapolis near the 5th Police Precinct serving as the epicenter of the tension.
Damage estimates came in around $500 million across the Twin Cities, with more than 400 buildings damaged or destroyed, according to the Star Tribune.
A big part of Frey's 2017 campaign was to improve police-community relations. The civil unrest following Floyd's death further separated police and community members to the point that the City Council is aiming to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a new public safety body.
Frey has come in for criticism from all angles over the course of the year, from both sides for the way his office and city police handled the response to the unrest, and on the left for his continued efforts to increase police officer numbers after yet another high-profile death of a Black person.
Frey admitted during the WCCO Radio interview that "one of the few high points" of the year was the birth of his daughter.
"It's maybe one of the very few high points of this year, which on the whole, let's be honest, it's been horrible," said Frey.
It's unclear at this point who will oppose Frey on the 2021 ticket. In 2017, Raymond Dehn finished second, followed by Hodges, Tom Hoch and Nekima Levy-Armstrong, who continues to serve as a .
