Barb Johnson

The introduction of instant-runoff voting (IRV) added uncertainty to city council races in Minneapolis. But when all the votes are (finally) counted, it appears likely that every incumbent who ran for re-election will prevail.

The personal is apparently political for Minneapolis City Council president Barb Johnson. City Pages reports that the four-term council member, who is locked in a tough, four-way re-election fight, makes some rather dubious campaign expenditures.
Johnson charged her campaign $1,154 for hairdresser appointments and $986 for dry-cleaning during the current four-year election cycle. No other city [...]

Four years ago, Barb Johnson was the only incumbent Minneapolis city council member who didn’t attract any opponents. But this year she faces three challengers to the post her family has held since 1975.

There are currently just two Hmong police officers assigned to Minneapolis’ 4th Precinct, both of whom work overnight shifts. North Side residents want at least one Hmong-speaking cop on the day shift to help foster better communications with the Minneapolis Police Department. But achieving that may be harder than it would seem.

Reaction to Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s Tuesday press conference announcing his unallotment of nearly $2.7 billion from the state budget has been swift and, at times, scathing.

Over the weekend, the Washington Post’s E.J. Dionne included Minneapolis City Council President Barbara Johnson in a column on how women in elective office view Sen. Hillary Clinton’s current travails. The nationally syndicated column included Johnson’s quotes alongside those from three U.S. representatives and the president of the Massachusetts Senate, and references to a couple [...]