The Minneapolis City Council is in the middle of their annual, charter-mandated tradition: amending the mayor's recommended budget. I ask Budget Committee Chair Aisha Chughtai what a "budget" even means if one department (MPD) can overspend their budget by $20 million. We talk about Mayor Frey calling council members "mean-spirited" for proposing cuts to his office staff. Chughtai says adjusting the size of the mayor's office is about eliminating redundancy under the new government structure that took effect in 2021. Plus, why she thinks it's a good idea to fund a non-fatal shooting task force but not a first responder wellness and training center.

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We react to last week's election results in Minneapolis. Taylor Dahlin and Josh Martin join me to talk about Jacob Frey's victory, the prospect of a closely divided city council, downballot success that flipped the Park Board to the progressive side, Mike Norton winning "worst pundit of 2025," and so much more. Plus a conversation with a candidate (and cherished friend) who ran a heroic campaign for Park Board while being hospitalized with serious health issues: Jason Garcia, commissioner-elect in Park District 4.

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We're talking about I-94 as a public health emergency that the Minnesota Department of Transportation feels no urgency to do anything about. With guest Mateo Frumholtz, public health researcher and PhD student at the University of Minnesota.

Rally against this public health catastrophe this upcoming Thursday, Nov 6. There will be delivery of a community petition to MnDOT asking that they restore the boulevard replacement option and continue to study removal of I-94. Bike with me to the rally! Details here: https://ourstreetsmn.org/94action

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We're breaking down the race for Minneapolis City Council in Ward 8 between Soren Stevenson and Josh Bassais. Joining me for analysis are a couple of Ward 8 icons: Andrea Riehl and Dan Suitor, lawyer to the stars.

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A conversation with Amber Frederick, candidate for one of three at-large seats on the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board.

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A conversation with Adam Schneider, candidate for one of three at-large seats on the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board.

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We're breaking down the race for Minneapolis City Council in Ward 10 between Council Member Aisha Chughtai and challenger Lydia Millard. Joining me for analysis is Natasha Dockter (not a real doctor).

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A conversation with Adam Dullinger, who argues he's more than just a single-issue candidate for mayor of St Paul.

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For years, a small but vociferous online community of ranked choice voting truthers have held firm to the belief that there's a way to game the system. Some say if we rank our ballots, not according to our preference, but in a way that communicates the correct password to the ancient aliens who run our elections, we can gain an advantage for our desired candidates. On today's episode I challenge my guests, Todd Schuman and Josh Martin, to reveal the secrets of RCV. Unfortunately, Todd and Josh are gatekeepers who never stop insisting those secrets don't exist. They say we should rank our ballots in a straightforward way, according to our candidate preference.

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A bike ride conversation with Elliott Payne, President of the Minneapolis City Council. We talk about issues at stake in the 2025 city election as he leads me through the heart of Northeast, across the river, into downtown, and finishing at City Hall.

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