Tell Us About Yourself

Pronouns: She/her/hers
Party Affiliation: DFL, Endorsed
Do you own or rent your home? Own

Let’s Get To Know You

What is your favorite album?

[Not answered]

Who are your heroes?

My grandmother is my hero. She had very little and gave so much to others. She shaped the values that I have.

How do you plan to engage with and be held accountable by community once you are elected?

I govern in a way that strives to be responsive to my constituents and members of the community. I will continue to support community leadership and work in partnership with and elevate the work of youth, women, people of color, and Indigenous people. I am accessible and approachable and have an open door to ways to improve working relationships. I work to communicate openly and regularly and invite feedback about issues large and small.

What’s your favorite thing about Minneapolis?

Minneapolis is the kind of place where a small group of people can make a big difference.

The Issues

Why should young people be invested in local politics?

Local government has a profound direct impact on people’s lives. You should demand that your representatives are fighting for your priorities.

Where do the inequities in our city stem from?

The inequalities in our city are the result of systemic white supremacy and a series of intentionally exclusionary and discriminatory practices in education, employment, infrastructure, and housing. We need to intentionally correct them.

What single issue could have the biggest impact in closing racial disparities in our city?

Since we have passed earned safe and sick time and a higher minimum wage I would name housing and housing stability as the highest impact.

Do you believe that we could ever have a city without police?

Yes

What would you do, as an elected official, to bring us closer to police abolition?

To support safety without policing, we need significant investment in education, housing and work to eliminate employment inequities. We would need to transform our approach to focus on the kinds of interventions that support violence prevention and counseling and the types of programs funded through the community safety pilot program. I will continue to advocate for investments in these priorities.

How do we continue to grow our city without displacing the people that want to stay here?

We need a stronger plan for housing stability. I am working to make sure the city’s comprehensive plan update supports needed housing and housing stability. I support shifting our affordable housing strategies toward prioritizing preservation of existing units. I support stronger renter protections that discourage evictions and incentivize having renters in the protection of a lease: changing policy where we have the authority and advocating for state law changes when needed. I think we need to put more resources into long-term affordability through land-banking and also do more to build wealth in communities of color through more aggressive programs to foster cooperative ownership or homeownership.

How will you fight against state preemption of local control?

I will continue to pass policies despite the threat of preemption. I will continue to work with our legislative delegation and community leaders to speak at the legislature in favor of local control. Most recently, I voted in support of the replacement to a local ordinance on plastic bags, in response to the Republican-led bill that preempted the ban of plastic bags.

What policy changes are necessary to improve the health of all Minneapolis residents?

I believe the health of all residents will be best improved by considering health in all policies — transportation and infrastructure, waste, land use and policing and safety in addition to policies and programs that directly influence health.

How can the city improve our transportation infrastructure?

We have made a lot of progress in improving transportation infrastructure for all users. Our 20-year streets funding commitment refocuses infrastructure investments in a lens of racial equity and transportation equity. We need to implement our complete streets policy fully in every project and continue to advocate for regional transit investments and prioritize the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists.

How will you work to improve conditions for workers in our city?

I will continue to champion workers rights and protections that reflect the realities of today’s economy, building off of the success of our earned safe and sick time and $15 minimum wage victories. It’s critical to center workers in these discussions and to continue to work to build support in the business community for workplaces that support workers. I would like to do more to prevent wage theft and support workers in specific industries with increased protections.

How do you define sanctuary city? Do you believe that Minneapolis should fill this role and what would you do to make this happen?

A true sanctuary city is one that aggressively protects our undocumented neighbors from federal deportation and refuses to invest city resources to do the work of ICE. I strongly believe Minneapolis should fill this role. I will continue to support any efforts by the Hennepin County Board Commissioners to expand our city’s existing policies to the County Sherrif’s office. I will continue to push for public safety beyond solely police to make sure our community feels safe.

What is the role of city government in shaping Minneapolis as the city of the future?

With inaction at the federal and state level, the role of cities to lead on progressive change is more vital than ever. We have a responsibility to grow equitably, ensure our community remains affordable for all, do what we can to combat climate change and eliminate our city’s racial disparities. We need to do this through targeting our investments and policy work toward these goals and ensuring that all we do centers equity.

Anything else you want people to know?
[Not answered]

For more information, visit www.votelisabender.com.

Tell Us About Yourself

Pronouns: Mr.

Party Affiliation: Republican

Do you own or rent your home? Own

Let’s Get To Know You

What is your favorite album?

No preference

Who are your heroes?

Not something I think about

How do you plan to engage with and be held accountable by community once you are elected?

I will attend neighborhood meetings and hold Office Hours as CM Lilligren did, and, since I write well, write frequently personally and publican to constituents.

What’s your favorite things about Minneapolis?

Not the weather, but I do like the Parks and Lakes. I wish I had more free time to take advantage of them.

The Issues

Why should young people be invested in local politics?

It is said over and over that we are spending our children’s money, and it is now more true than ever.

Where do the inequities in our city stem from?

The DFL has truly fostered an Urban Plantation. It is astonishing how people treated so unjustly have allowed to be deceived for so long. How can it be the Republicans – the Democrats have controlled City politics for 50 years.

What single issue could have the biggest impact in closing racial disparities in our city?

My first initiative would be to find ways to get more persons of color trained and experienced in trades-related fields. Electricians, plum [over character limit].

Do you believe that we could ever have a city without police?

No

What would you do, as an elected official, to bring us closer to police abolition?

We will always need Police. There are bad people and we need Police to protect us from them.

How do we continue to grow our city without displacing the people that want to stay here?

We have to find ways for people who want to stay to make more money. It is an economic issue. You cannot build new residences for people who make less than, say, $20.00 and hour. Right now what is being built is targeted for young, white, employed semi-professionals, and the rents and mortgages are at the high end of the scale for what they can afford. It is a sad situation.

How will you fight against state preemption of local control?

In many cases I will not fight against State preemption of local control. The proper body to legislate is the State Legislature. If you look carefully at local initiatives they often hurt the very people they intend to help, or the costs out weigh the benefits. You cannot forget that programs transfer costs unequally, sometimes or often to people not fortune enough to be on the receiving end.

What policy changes are necessary to improve the health of all Minneapolis residents?

Education. Again and again we have to advise how to live a healthy life. I only recently realized what I was eating would have such a detrimental effect on my blood pressure. I thought things would balance out, but it is not so.

How can the city improve our transportation infrastructure?

If the money spent on light rail to was directed at buses, what kind of bus service do you think we would have. Consider BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) stations that looked like light rail platforms. But actually, BRT and light rails future target market is not City people, it is suburban people [over character limit].

How will you work to improve conditions for workers in our city?

I think improvement and increase efficiencies in health care.

How do you define sanctuary city? Do you believe that Minneapolis should fill this role and what would you do to make this happen?

I do not believe in the sanctuary city concept because law-abiding good citizens are not targeted, criminals when they are detained are.

What is the role of city government in shaping Minneapolis as the city of the future?

The City leadership has to guard against enjoining frivolous, naïve policy implementations that complicate and obstructs real progress toward social justice.

Anything else you want people to know?

The burden of inefficient, deceived government falls squarely on the shoulders of citizens. How can people be convinced that their lives will improved when more ordinances and rules are made. Do they really believe that the ordinances and rules will be applied equally? No, they usually are not. As always, the people who are just above the poverty level are imposed more hardship.