Two Democratic state senators from Minnesota swing districts have endorsed socialist Sen. Omar Fateh for Minneapolis mayor.
Fateh, a Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member from Senate District 62, launched his mayoral campaign in December 2024, pledging to “work with the progressive City Council to uplift those of us who are struggling to get by,” per his website, which lists an endorsement from the DSA Twin Cities chapter.
In a recent social media post, Fateh emphasized his legislative wins, noting that his “extreme ideas” like tuition-free college and “fair wages for rideshare drivers” passed with bipartisan support.
The post also included a list of endorsements from his DFL Senate colleagues, including Sen. Aric Putnam of St. Cloud and Judy Seeberger of Afton. Both represent swing districts in the Minnesota Senate that are considered potential pickup opportunities for Republicans in 2026.
Seeberger, for instance, won her election in Senate District 41 by just 321 votes in 2022. Putnam won his 2022 election in Senate District 14 by 4.7%; President Donald Trump won Putnam’s district in last fall’s presidential election.
Both Seeberger and Putnam are members of the Senate DFL’s “Blue Dog Coalition,” which was formed “to pursue a practical, bipartisan path forward for all Minnesotans.”
Fateh’s political positions, controversies
Fateh supported a 2021 effort to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a “department of public safety,” which voters rejected, and backed a failed sanctuary state bill for illegal immigrants.
His career in politics has been marked by various controversies, including his receipt of $11,000 in campaign contributions from individuals connected to the Feeding Our Future scandal. Fateh said he returned the donations. Current Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey received $9,000 in campaign donations from Feeding Our Future defendants.
During the recent trial of Feeding Our Future mastermind Aimee Bock, a 2021 video surfaced showing Fateh discussing his efforts to advocate for the organization.
In 2022, Fateh’s brother-in-law was convicted of lying to a grand jury about his handling of absentee ballots during Fateh’s 2020 primary campaign, Sahan Journal reported.
Fateh was also the subject of a Senate ethics investigation and ordered to participate in campaign finance training after failing to disclose $1,000 in campaign payments to Somali TV Minnesota.
In 2023, a Senate ethics complaint was filed against Fateh for comments he made on the Senate floor suggesting that his Republican colleagues look like “violent extremists” who “advocate for the superiority of the white race.”
Mayoral campaign
Fateh’s campaign targets incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey for failing to end homelessness by 2022, as promised, and for vetoing “every solution that comes to his desk.”
He also said on April 30, “Mayor Frey would rather stall progress by fighting with the mostly DFL, progressive city council majority instead of finding ways to work together.”
“We deserve leadership that makes it so people want to continue to live here,” Fateh’s site states. He also wrote, “With Donald Trump stepping back into the Oval Office, everything we’ve worked so hard to create is in jeopardy. It’s not enough to just stand up to Donald Trump. It’s time to push back with forward-thinking leadership.”
Symone Harms
Symone Harms is a Media Production and Business Marketing student at Bethel University. She is actively involved in The Royals Investment Fund, The 25, theatre, and other leadership positions. She also cohosts Rooted, a podcast dedicated to being rooted in truth, growing in freedom, and prospering in life. A Minnesota native with a passion for storytelling and digital media, she aspires to a career in broadcasting as a news anchor and reporter.
