Wielding lawn signs and leaflets, a coalition of political opponents is attacking Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak for not hiring the police officers he had budgeted.

But Rybak's office said Thursday that the police staffing issue ought to be about results, not numbers.

The local Independence and Republican parties plan to begin distributing at least 600 lawn signs and 15,000 leaflets this weekend calling on Rybak to hire 50 more officers.

They cite Rybak's repeated promises that his 2007 budget would add 43 officers, to bring the sworn force to 893. The department said Thursday that it has 853 officers as of this week.

The campaign follows an August radio ad barrage by the Police Officers Federation attacking Rybak on the hiring issue.

The mayor's website argues that the number of officers budgeted is now only 864. That's because some uniformed positions were converted to civilian jobs and because neighborhood funding didn't come through for others.

That doesn't wash with Peter Tharaldson, Fifth Congressional District Independence Party chair. "Having police on the street is one of the most powerful tools in crime fighting," he said. The police staffing issue is part of keeping a DFL-dominated City Hall honest, he added.

But Rybak spokesman Jeremy Hanson said falling crime rates indicate that the mayor's multi-faceted strategy of building police ranks while investing in technology such as surveillance cameras and spot shotters is having an impact.

"Just looking at a single number is one-dimensional," Hanson said. "The fact of the matter is that your police officers are doing an incredible job driving crime down throughout the city." Violent crime is down 13 percent so far this year, while all crime is down almost 6 percent. But both categories remain above 2005 figures.

George Soule, an Independence Party activist who researched the issue, called Rybak's performance on police staffing "a substantial retreat."

Assistant Chief Sharon Lubinski said police numbers this year peaked at the beginning of the summer, when the force needs its greatest strength.

State DFL chair Brian Melendez attacked Rybak's Republican critics. He said cuts in local aid proposed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty are responsible for the city's difficulty in adding officers.

"This is partly a problem of Tim Pawlenty's making," Melendez said, noting that the federation endorsed Pawlenty. Police ranks fell by about 100 officers during 2003-2005 before rising again.

The police staffing issue has been used against Rybak before by political opponents. Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin hit Rybak on public safety issues in the 2005 mayoral race. McLaughlin gained substantial North Side support, but the issue wasn't powerful enough to oust Rybak.

Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438

Steve Brandt • sbrandt@startribune.com