Annie Young

They are called “pre-general” campaign-finance reports, but with the general election in Minneapolis only a day away, many candidates’ reports have yet to be filed, according to a website maintained by Hennepin County. In select races that could be close and have reports posted, the money race gives an indication of what the candidates had to work with in the closing days of their campaigns.

Although Minneapolis held no primary election this year, candidates for city office still had to file “pre-primary” campaign-finance reports under a new ordinance passed this summer. Yet for two weeks after the Sept. 8 deadline, confusion and other delays kept a couple dozen candidate and political committee reports from reaching the public.

A flurry of candidate filings on deadline day brought to 22 the number of city races that could, in theory, be decided by instant-runoff voting (IRV). Last-minute filers included John Malone, a plaintiff in an anti-IRV lawsuit that the state Supreme Court rejected in June.

When Republican Tom Conlon leaves the St. Paul School Board this summer, he’ll also be leaving Minneapolis and St. Paul with only two elected city officials not from the DFL Party.

A proposal floated May 21 to put ads for Lowe’s home-improvement chain in Minneapolis parks passed the full park board Wednesday, despite commissioners’ stated misgivings about the signs. The two banners, along with 12-by-17 inch indoor signs at other parks, are part of a deal in which Lowe’s promises to provide certain city parks with [...]

Bus windows and skyways get covered in ads; are public parks next? Minneapolis taxpayers could soon be greeted at their city parks by banners advertising a national home improvement chain that has no stores in the city proper. Lowe’s says it’s willing to donate $90,000 in goods and services to six parks. The string attached: [...]