Democratic socialist mayoral candidate Omar Fateh won the endorsement of his city party. Then the state party overturned the result. Representative Ilhan Omar calls it “inexcusable.”
Omar Fateh in an interview with KARE 11 News on August 7. 2025.(KARE 11 News)
Anyone who knows the epic history of the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party will tell you that its internal politics have often been contentious. But out of that contention have come some of the most dynamic figures to ever grace the national political scene: from presidential candidates Eugene McCarthy, Walter Mondale and Hubert Humphrey to more contemporary leaders on the left, such as the late US Senator Paul Wellstone, former US representative and now Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and US Representative Ilhan Omar.
The DFL is also a party where grassroots activists have often lifted up political outsiders and activists and put them on paths to prominence. So it wasn’t all that surprising when, on July 19, the Minneapolis DFL endorsed the mayoral campaign of just such a rising star: state Senator Omar Fateh, a democratic socialist who has championed bold efforts to expand affordable housing and rent stabilization, supported a $20-an-hour minimum wage and taken up the cause of unionized and non-unionized workers.
Fateh’s focus on affordability issues and his energetic challenge to Democratic Party lethargy have garnered comparisons to New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani—another young, Muslim, democratic socialist anti-establishment candidate—with some calling Fateh “the Mamdani of Minneapolis.” Fateh has embraced those comparisons. After Mamdani’s landslide victory over former Governor Andrew Cuomo in June’s New York City mayoral primary, Fateh declared, “Minneapolis Next!”
Initially, the Minneapolis DFL appeared to agree. In the final formal balloting at the July convention, more than 60 percent of delegates chose to back Fateh over incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey, a DFLer who last year issued a record number of vetoes of measures approved by the progressive majority on the city council, including a Gaza ceasefire resolution.
In addition, just before the convention adjourned, and at a point when a number of Frey backers had departed, Fateh won a show-of-hands vote where delegates held up badges to indicate whom they supported.
Fateh began campaigning, accurately, as the “DFL-endorsed” candidate.
But then the surprise came. Last week, a state DFL party committee revoked the endorsement after Frey and his allies complained that a “highly flawed and untested” electronic voting system produced a significant number of uncounted votes at the convention. Concerns were also raised about delays tied to slow Internet connections and a host of issues that frustrated backers of both leading endorsement contenders.
Frey celebrated the decision to revoke the endorsement, saying, “I am proud to be a member of a party that believes in correcting our mistakes.” State DFL leaders called for unity. But Fateh and his backers said the revocation—which was coupled with a decision barring the Minneapolis DFL from making another endorsement—represented an outrageous overreach by the state party.
Minnesota DFL conventions have a long history of factional fights and conflicts, and this one was no different. But, as Amanda Otero, co–executive director of Take Action MN, said when Fateh backers rallied on Friday, “The will of the delegates was clear, and I need a party who cares more about building power with the people and upholding our will than a set of technicalities and rules that ultimately did not disrupt the ultimate outcome.”
Fateh objected to the revocation of his endorsement by announcing,
Twenty-eight party insiders voted to take away our endorsement behind closed doors. This group was comprised of non-Minneapolis residents, Mayor Frey supporters and even donors. This is exactly what Minneapolis voters are sick of. The insider games, the backroom decisions and feeling like our voice doesn’t matter in our own city. Frey’s team used every tactic they could, including delay and confusion on convention day, because they didn’t have the votes. We see this for what it is—disenfranchisement of thousands of Minneapolis caucus goers and the delegates who represented all of us on convention day. Let me be clear, we’re still in this fight. And we’re going to win.
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The reaction of US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was every bit as firm and focused as that of the candidate. “It is inexcusable to overturn the DFL endorsement from Omar Fateh,” she said. “A small group, a majority living outside Minneapolis, met privately to overturn the will of Minneapolis delegates who volunteered, organized, and participated in a months-long DFL process. Unacceptable.”
Omar, who represents Minneapolis in the House, told The Nation, “It is paramount that the Democratic Party does everything possible to bring in new voices and new communities into the coalition. I often say we are a big-tent party and we need to ensure we continue to uplift and celebrate progressive perspectives. At a time when people are hungry for bold change across the country, we need to support, not silence, progressive candidates. Zohran Mamdani’s incredible victory in New York was a testament to the people-powered campaign voters are craving. In order to win upcoming elections, we have to center the needs of working people and give voters clear reasons to support us.”
Notably, though Mamdani won the New York City primary, he has yet to be endorsed by prominent Democrats such as Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
Along with a group of DFL elected officials from Minneapolis—including three state senators, five state representatives, three Hennepin County commissioners, Minneapolis City Council president Elliott Payne and four other council members, and Minneapolis School Board member Greta Callahan—Representative Omar signed onto a statement that declared:
We strongly condemn the DFL’s Constitution, Bylaws & Rules Committee’s (CBRC) decision to revoke the DFL endorsement from Omar Fateh. Last month, thousands of caucus-goers and delegates across Minneapolis gathered to participate in the Minneapolis DFL Convention. Now, a month later, a small group of DFL board members, a majority living outside Minneapolis, met privately to overturn the will of Minneapolis delegates who volunteered, organized, and participated in a months-long DFL process. It is inexcusable to overturn the results weeks after the convention because board members did not like the outcome. Not only does this decision set an extremely dangerous precedent, it will undermine the DFL endorsing process going forward and fails to center the will of delegates.Right now, there is a clear tension between the progressive democrats who are challenging the status quo and moderate democrats. It is extremely disheartening that Omar Fateh, the first Black mayoral candidate to be DFL-endorsed in the last three decades, will have his endorsement revoked. Chair Richard Carlbom campaigned on uniting the DFL; this decision directly runs counter to that effort, to which we are all committed. The DFL Party is a big-tent party and all factions should be fairly represented, not silenced. Minneapolis is the heart of the engine of Democratic turnout in our state. Undoubtedly, this appalling decision will leave many voters feeling discouraged and unwelcome from participating in our party.Throughout this mayoral campaign, we have seen the influence of big money in our politics. This should not be how decisions are made in our party. Blatant corruption should be widely condemned, not tolerated. We know organized people beat organized money. Fateh’s campaign organized and won the endorsement. This decision will be a stain on our party for years to come and damage our ability to organize for Democratic wins this year, next year, and beyond.
John NicholsTwitterJohn Nichols is the executive editor of The Nation. He previously served as the magazine’s national affairs correspondent and Washington correspondent. Nichols has written, cowritten, or edited over a dozen books on topics ranging from histories of American socialism and the Democratic Party to analyses of US and global media systems. His latest, cowritten with Senator Bernie Sanders, is the New York Times bestseller It's OK to Be Angry About Capitalism.