Minneapolis mayoral candidate Omar Fateh, a Democratic Socialist whose campaign has drawn parallels to Zohran Mamdani, lost the endorsement of Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) on Thursday.
The decision to strip Fateh of his endorsement came after incumbent Minneapolis Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey challenged the DFL’s voting process.
“After a thoughtful and transparent review of the challenges, the Constitution, Bylaws & Rules Committee found substantial failures in the Minneapolis Convention’s voting process on July 19th, including an acknowledgement that a mayoral candidate was errantly eliminated from contention,” DFL Party Chairman Richard Carlbom said in a statement.
“As a result, the Constitution, Bylaws & Rules Committee has vacated the mayoral endorsement,” he added.
Fateh, a 35-year-old Somali American state senator, had received more than 60% of the vote from delegates at the DFL’s contested convention.
In a campaign video, Fateh slammed the DFL’s revocation of his endorsement.
“Twenty-eight party insiders voted to take away our endorsement behind closed doors,” Fateh said. “This group was comprised of non-Minneapolis residents, Mayor Frey’s supporters and even donors.
“This is exactly what Minneapolis voters are sick of: The insider games, the backroom decision, and feeling like our voice doesn’t matter in our own city,” he added.
“Let me be clear. We’re still in this fight, and we’re going to win,” Fateh vowed.
Frey, who was elected mayor in 2017 and reelected in 2021, was in charge of Minneapolis while the city burned during 2020’s Black Lives Matter riots in the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of a white police officer.
In a statement, Frey praised the DFL for setting aside Fateh’s endorsement after reviewing the convention process.
“I am proud to be a member of a party that believes in correcting our mistakes, and I am glad that this inaccurate and obviously flawed process was set aside,” the mayor said.
“I look forward to having a full and honest debate with Senator Fateh about our city’s future, with the outcome now resting squarely where it should — with all the people of Minneapolis,” Frey added.
The state party review of the convention found the electronic voting system to be “substantially flawed,” resulting in a 176-vote undercount on the first ballot, and a candidate (DeWayne Davis), who should have remained in the race, was improperly dropped.
“The credential and upgrading process was flawed,” the review also determined. “This included the loss of a credentials book, an unsecured master check-in sheet, and unauthorized access to the digital spreadsheet.”
Fateh secured the DFL’s endorsement just weeks after Mamdani’s upset victory in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary election.
Fateh ran on a campaign similar to Mamdani, calling for rent stabilization, more affordable housing and higher taxes on the wealthy.
Both men are also young state legislators, Democratic Socialists, Muslim and have African roots.
Fateh is set to face off with Frey in the November mayoral election.
