Incumbent Jacob Frey (D), Omar Fateh (D), and 13 other candidates are running in the nonpartisan general election for mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Nov. 4, 2025.

Elections in Minneapolis are officially nonpartisan, but the Minneapolis City Charter allows mayoral and city council candidates to choose a party label to appear below their name on the official ballot. Ballotpedia includes candidates’ party or principle to best reflect what voters will see on their ballot.

Frey was first elected in 2017, defeating incumbent Betsy Hodges (D) in the fifth round of ranked-choice voting. Frey, a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), says he is a pragmatic progressive. He says, “I’m running because with everything going on in the world, experience matters. … I have stood up for what’s best for our city even when it was not politically expedient to do so. It’s time for us to love our city more than our ideology. Together, we can make Minneapolis a national model for progressive governance that is laser-focused not on politics, but on delivering for residents.”

Fateh is also a DFL member who also says he is a democratic socialist. He was elected to the Minnesota Senate, representing District 62, in 2020. Fateh says, “We deserve leadership that makes it so people want to continue to live here, raise families here, and start businesses here. … We need a Mayor who understands that a city that lifts up working people is a city that lifts up everyone. Because when the city invests in us, we have more time to invest in the people we love.”

While the city’s mayor has been a DFL member since 1978, the election has highlighted divisions within the larger party, primarily between Fateh’s democratic socialists and Frey’s democrats. On July 19, 2025, the Minneapolis DFL endorsed Fateh at a convention, which Fox 9′s Kilat Fitzgerald said included the party’s “symbolic vote of confidence, as well as volunteer power, to put toward [Fateh’s] efforts to win the race.” This was the first time the Minneapolis DLF endorsed a mayoral candidate since 2009, as an endorsement requires a candidate to win at least 60% of delegates.

Frey’s supporters challenged the endorsement process, alleging there were issues with the electronic voting system. The statewide DFL reviewed the challenges and revoked the endorsement on August 21, 2025. Fateh said, “Twenty-eight party insiders voted to take away our endorsement behind closed doors. This group was composed 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 said, “I am proud to be a member of a party that believes in correcting our mistakes, and I am glad that this inaccurate and obviously flawed process was set aside.”

Party divisions predate Fateh’s revoked endorsement. Following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, 2020, the Democratic city council disagreed with Frey on police reform, specifically on defunding the police. According to the MinnPost, “A coalition of Minneapolis candidates fueled by left-wing energy and skepticism of the status quo at City Hall secured a majority on the City Council [during the 2023] municipal elections, winning seven of 13 seats.” As of Sept. 9, 2025, five of the seven progressive councilmembers endorsed Fateh, as well as one councilmember, Jamal Osman (D), who was not aligned with either the seven progressive councilmembers or councilmembers who typically support Frey. Three councilmembers who typically support Frey endorsed him.

Also running in the general are Andrea Revel, Troy Peterson, Kevin Ward, Xavier Pauke, Adam Terzich, Kevin A. Dwire, Charlie McCloud, Alejandro Richardson, Laverne Turner, Jeffrey Wagner, DeWayne Davis, Jazz Hampton, and Brenda Short.

Minneapolis uses ranked-choice voting to elect city officials. Voters can rank up to three mayoral candidates on their ballots. Click here to learn more about how ranked-choice voting works in this election.

Minneapolis has a strong mayor-council system. The city council serves as the city’s primary legislative body and the mayor is considered the city’s chief executive.