St. Paul will hold a general election on Tuesday, Nov. 7. This year’s local election consists of three races: ISD #625 school board member, St. Paul city council member 4th ward and a ballot question on implementing a 1% sales tax.
What is a school board member?
School board members work as a team to manage public schools in the district, create and change rules and decide study standards. For example, the school board can often influence curriculum choices.
All of the school board candidates in St. Paul are running bipartisan.
The candidates are Chauntyll Allen, Yusef Carrillo, Zuki Ellis, Carlo Franco, Abdi S. Omer, Erica Valliant and Gita Rijal Zeitler.
Chauntyll Allen
Chauntyll Allen is up for reelection this year for her second term. Allen’s campaign incorporates seven main initiatives including boosting literacy for K-3 students, funding technical and trade education back into schools, implementing universal pre-K and increasing educator pay. Allen has received endorsements from the Saint Paul DFL, Saint Paul Federation of Educators Local 28, the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund and the Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation. Local community leaders including 4th Ward council member Mitra Jalali, have endorsed Allen.
Yusef Carrillo
Yusef Carrillo was elected interim director on the St. Paul School Board of Education in 2020. Carrillo’s campaign initiatives are “creating safe, supportive and welcoming schools” according to his campaign website. His main campaign focuses are transparency, accountability and equitable safety. Carrillo received endorsements from the Saint Paul DFL, Saint Paul Federation of Educators Local 28, Council 5 AFSCME, Stonewall DFL, Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation and 2nd Ward council member Rebecca Noecker.
Zuki Ellis
Zuki Ellis is up for reelection for her third term; she has served as chair, vice chair, clerk and mentor to new board members. Ellis’s advocates for school safety, school funding, and special education. Her campaign also focuses on the evaluation and approach of the current school system, according to her website. Ellis received endorsements from St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, Senator Erin Murphy and St. Paul Board of Education Directors.
Carlo Franco
Carlo Franco serves as the youth engagement and training manager for the City of Saint Paul and the DFL Latino Caucus, also known as Movimiento Chair. Franco’s campaign focuses on school-community initiatives, culture and equity among faculty and students. Franco has received endorsements from the Saint Paul DFL, Saint Paul Federation of Educators Local 28, Stonewall DFL, OutFront Minnesota Action, Council 5 American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 32, Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation and 4th Ward council member Mitra Jalali.
Erica Valliant
Erica Valliant currently works for People Serving People, the largest emergency shelter for families experiencing homelessness in Minnesota. Valliant has a long-term plan for Saint Paul Public Schools with a main initiative on diversity and equitability among the staff, family, and students. Valliant is endorsed by Saint Paul DFL, Saint Paul Federation of Educators Local 28, Council 5 AFSCME and State Representative Maria Isa Perez-Vega.
Gita Rijal Zeitler and Abdi S. Omer do not have public profiles for their campaigns.
St. Paul Ballot Question – 1% Sales Tax
This year’s election has a single ballot question: “Should the City of Saint Paul establish a 1% sales and use tax?” According to the City of Saint Paul, the tax would generate $738 million to repair and improve streets and bridges and $246 million to improve parks and recreation facilities over the next 20 years.
A vote YES means these costs would be funded through the new 1% sales and use tax. A vote of NO means that most of these costs would be supported by other local revenue sources, primarily from increased property taxes.
What does a city council member do?
City council members are responsible for “setting City policy through ordinances and resolutions,” according to the Saint Paul City Council website.
Both of the candidates for the city council are bipartisan. The candidates are Robert Bushard and Mitra Jalali.
Mitra Jalali
Mitra Jalali is running for reelection as a 4th Ward council member. Jalali has four main campaign priorities: Building community wealth, climate action and sustainability, community-first public safety, affordable housing, and ownership. Jalali received endorsements from AFSCME Council 5, International Brotherhood of Electrical, Workers Local 110, Ironworkers Local 512, the Minnesota chapter of the Laborers’ International Union of North America, Pipefitters Local 455, Plumbers Local 34, North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters, and others. She has also received several community leader endorsements, such as St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter.
When asked why college students should vote for the city council, Jalali stated in an email to TommieMedia that “students should care deeply about our city council because it has such an immediate impact on their lives. Our work directly impacts students, particularly housing, climate action, small business support, and public safety. Having affordable housing, sustainable transportation, and a safe and welcoming community are all things directly impacted by policy set at the city level.”
Robert Bushard
Robert Bushard is running for election for 4th Ward council member. His top three priorities are to reduce crime, support single-family homeownership, and eliminate rank-choice voting elections. No information could be found on endorsements for his campaign.
When asked why college students should vote for city council, Bushard stated in an email to TommieMedia that “it is important for students to see what is going on at the local level of government where citizens’ voices should be heard loud and clear by elected officials.”
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7.
Claire Blum can be reached at blum6444@stthomas.edu.
Sources:
https://www.vote411.org/ https://www.chauntyllforschoolboard.com/about http://www.eastmetrovoterguide.com/robert-bushard.html https://yusef4spps.org/ https://mitrajalali.com/ https://www.carlofranco.org/ https://zukiellis.com/ https://bushard4ward4.com https://www.valliantforschoolboard.com/https://www.stpaul.gov.