In St. Paul's Fourth Ward, Mitra Jalali pushes for more progressive City Council agenda

Mitra Jalali's bright pink yard signs are almost a fixture in the northwest corner of St. Paul. For the third time in five years, the City Council member is going door-to-door campaigning, seeking her second full term representing the Fourth Ward.

This time around is a bit different for Jalali, 37, who ran in a special election in 2018 and again the following year. With four of her colleagues slated to step down at the end of this year, Jalali hopes to become the second-longest serving member on the seven-person council.

The DFL-endorsed incumbent's only challenger is 76-year-old Robert Bushard, a self-described libertarian-leaning Republican. Most of his policy stances are polar opposites of Jalali's, who has tried to push an already progressive council further left in the past five years.

"I just think the biggest problem we've got is that the City Council does not listen to the public," Bushard said.

"We've had a really hard four years," Jalali said, given the COVID-19 pandemic, the murder of George Floyd and subsequent civil unrest. "But the values of my ward are still really clear. We want responsive local government. We want a city that cares about its people. We want to fund the needs in the community for the greater good."

The first Asian-American woman to sit on the St. Paul City Council, Jalali also was the only renter on the council when she took office and the first member to openly identify as part of the LGBTQ community.

Now she's helping recruit young women of color to run as part of a campaign bloc, paving the way for what Jalali describes as "potentially the most diverse, representative, progressive council that we've ever had."

Active track record

Covering the Hamline-Midway, Merriam Park and St. Anthony Park neighborhoods, as well as parts of Macalester-Groveland and the Como neighborhood, the Fourth Ward has something to offer everyone, Jalali said.

There's an arts district, several craft breweries, the Little Africa corridor lined with immigrant businesses, bustling apartment buildings along the Green Line going down University Avenue and quiet, tree-lined streets of single-family homes.

"I think the Fourth Ward reflects the heart of the city, and I see Mitra as an organizer, working with all the neighborhood groups, working with all the stakeholders," said former Mayor Jim Scheibel, who regularly invites Jalali to speak to his class at Hamline University. "I think she's done a good job of focusing on some of the big issues, like housing."

Jonathan Oppenheimer said that while he finds many of Jalali's goals admirable, he's found it difficult to work through disagreements with the council member. Oppenheimer is a member of a group now suing the city over plans to demolish and rebuild the 92-year-old Hamline Midway Library.

"The problem is that [Jalali's] such a fierce ideologue, so obsessed with identity politics, that she's an example of the worst kind of radicalism on the left," Oppenheimer said. "If you disagree with her, as I have publicly, you become an enemy not worthy of civil dialogue or debate."

Others said Jalali was a passionate advocate when they had problems with the city. Mahmoud Shahin said he was repeatedly rebuffed when he asked city staffers to move light poles and electrical boxes recently placed in front of his restaurant, Mim's Cafe. After Jalali and Mayor Melvin Carter stopped by for a conversation, Shahin's been told the equipment will be moved down the street.

"I love Mitra," Shahin said. "She is not a lazy person. She is very active. And if you need anything, she will call you right away. She will come to you, and even if she disagrees with you, she will at least sympathize."

Conflicting priorities

Bushard, a Vietnam War veteran and former computer specialist, said he felt the need to run because crime has increased, and no one else emerged to take on Jalali. Last year, he challenged DFL state Sen. Erin Murphy when she ran unopposed.

"I would prefer to be retired and just go fishing," he said. "But someone had to step up."

Where Jalali wants more density and public transportation, Bushard advocates for more single-family homes. Jalali supports the planned Summit Avenue bike trail, while Bushard said he wants to rally council candidates who oppose the project. Jalali lists climate change as a top priority; in a recent debate, Bushard called climate change a crock.

Bushard said he's "pretty certain" he won't get elected. Jalali has raised more than $205,000 for her campaign, while Bushard said he's not fundraising because he doesn't want to deal with campaign finance forms.

The future of the council looks bright to Jalali, who said St. Paul is getting more support than ever from Democratic administrations at the state and federal levels. She plans to use her experience to lead the new council — possibly as its president.

"I would love, if we have a majority of council members united around a general shared progressive agenda, to have the first six months be a combination of delivering on actual policy changes and also just showing a different way of governing," she said.

Read more about the candidates at startribune.com/stpaul-guide. All seven St. Paul council seats are on the ballot this fall.