Stoking Controversy One Porch at a Time
A new entrant has joined the Ward 10 City Council race. She faces an uphill battle: a late start, little name recognition, and limited funding. Still, incumbent Aisha Chughtai may have given her opponents an opening. At Uptown Porch Fest, Chughtai used a performance by Space Monkey Mafia as a platform to attack Mayor Jacob Frey:
“We are going to transform this city. Fuck Jacob Frey, fuck fascism and fuck Donald Trump.”
The remarks, reported by Star Tribune journalist Tim Harlow, drew sharp criticism. Lydia Millard, Chughtai’s main challenger, called the comments “toxic.”
Why lash out? It may reflect immaturity (Chughtai is the youngest person ever elected to the Minneapolis City Council), frustration, or a calculated strategy. Many progressives remain horrified by Donald Trump. But as a city council member, Chughtai has little influence over Trump. Linking Frey to Trump feels like a transparent attempt to redirect anger at the president toward a local opponent. Chughtai calls Omar Fateh her “friend and brother.”
That tactic ignores Frey’s history with Trump. In 2019, he opposed Trump’s rally at the Target Center, insisting the campaign pay $530,000 for public safety costs. While the city recovered only $100,000 from the arena operators, Frey’s stance brought him abuse and online attacks from Trump supporters.
Yet some DFL activists seem intent on branding any Democrat who resists party orthodoxy as “MAGA.” They overlook an obvious fact: disliking Trump is not the same as approving of the Minneapolis DFL or the national Democratic Party. Polls show voters’ deep dissatisfaction. Residents want more than slogans—they want workable plans to address the city’s problems.
Chants against ICE or denunciations of Trump do little to solve Ward 10’s immediate issues: empty storefronts, open-air drug markets, and gun violence. Building consensus around real solutions is hard work. Chughtai appears to have stopped trying, a vacuum her challengers are moving to fill. Millard and newcomer DeShannon Grimes have been listening to residents, and what they hear is that Chughtai only engages those who already agree with her.
Ward 10 voters will make their choice in November. Whether profanity helps or hurts Chughtai remains to be seen. What is clear is that outrage over national politics won’t repair Minneapolis. It plays well to a friendly crowd, but it does nothing to address the city’s problems.
Interview Summary
Shannon Grimes, a Minneapolis resident since 2003 and longtime Uptown renter, is running for City Council in Ward 10. Originally from Milwaukee, she moved to the city for a job with Saks Fifth Avenue and now works as a realtor while also fostering rescue dogs. Her decision to run stems from concerns that Uptown is being neglected—businesses are leaving, amenities are declining, and residents no longer enjoy the walkable, vibrant neighborhood it once was. She recalls being able to shop, dine, and enjoy entertainment locally, but now finds herself and others driving elsewhere for basic needs and leisure.
Grimes identifies three top priorities: reviving Uptown’s business core, addressing homelessness and drug use, and ensuring fair rent and taxes. She advocates for business incentives, including rent subsidies or build-out assistance, to help entrepreneurs open and stay in Uptown. She also calls for creative use of vacant buildings, such as converting them into hotels or safe havens for unhoused individuals, which could both boost the local economy and address social issues. On homelessness, she stresses that pushing people from place to place isn’t a solution; instead, she envisions safe, local facilities that provide shelter and support.
She also champions rent stabilization, drawing inspiration from Saint Paul’s program, and insists that rent should match neighborhood amenities. With rising rents, costly parking, and fewer local services, she feels residents aren’t getting fair value. Grimes links declining livability to policy missteps, such as street reconstructions that reduced parking and deterred visitors, and she argues for more responsive city planning that includes business input. She also wants to address broader city concerns, like improving police-community trust, enhancing public safety through both MPD and prevention groups, and ensuring equitable resource allocation across neighborhoods.
Grimes contrasts herself with current Ward 10 leadership, criticizing incumbent Aisha Chughtai for being inaccessible to many constituents and lacking visible engagement with local businesses. She says Uptown’s diverse population deserves representation that includes all communities, not just select groups. While acknowledging challenger Lydia Millard, she questions the specificity and feasibility of Millard’s proposals. Grimes plans to run a grassroots campaign through door-to-door canvassing, business visits, and active outreach on social media, aiming to restore Uptown as a safe, vibrant, and economically healthy neighborhood.
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