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Continued: Rybak wins DFL endorsement
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Follow local news on TwitterMinneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak easily won his first DFL endorsement for the office he has held for eight years at the city party convention on Saturday.
"I've never had more energy for this job, and I have never been more confident in this city," Rybak said, concluding an eight-minute speech with a leap from the Washburn High School stage to shake hands with delegates.
Rybak won the endorsement with 75 percent support on the first ballot, with only community activist Al Flowers Jr. put in nomination against him.
"It's time for us the citizens to take the city back, to hold them accountable," said Flowers, who decried the lack of a question period for candidates and said he'd oppose Rybak in the November election. He drew only 8.8 percent support, or about half the number of delegates who opted for no endorsement, some of them supporters of erstwhile candidate Bob Miller.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you so very much for doing this," Rybak said after the vote was tallied.
Rybak triumphed on his third endorsement try. In 2001, he blocked incumbent Sharon Sayles Belton's bid for endorsement, and in 2005 Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin blocked Rybak's bid.
The convention also endorsed only incumbent Carol Becker in a four-way race for two seats on the Board of Estimate and Taxation, which sets city levies, before losing a quorum. DFLers also seemed to signal they may want a new direction for the Park Board by snubbing two incumbents by withholding endorsements.
Southwest-area Commissioner Bob Fine was trounced by Brad Bourn for the party nod. But Fine said he's planning to run anyhow, given that he has been elected to the Park Board three times without party backing. Bourn, who got the support of 79 percent of delegates, is a youth and volunteer coordinator for a North Side community agency.
Liz Wielinski easily won endorsement with 72 percent over Michael Rainville for the East Side park seat being vacated by Walt Dziedzic. She has been following park issues for six years and helped to organize a Park Board monitoring group. Rainville, who works for the area convention and visitors bureau, said he hasn't decided whether to run against Wielinski in the November election.
The contests for two park endorsements deadlocked. The three-way battle for the Nokomis-area seat ended after two ballots without a winner claiming a 60 percent threshold and when two trailing candidates united to adjourn. Martin Demgen, who was leading with 48 percent, Jason Stone and Steve Barland all plan to run. Demgen has labor support while Rybak backs Stone.
In a North Side district, neither Natalie Collins nor incumbent Jon Olson got the needed 60 percent support in four ballots, with Collins leading.
Anita Tabb was endorsed without opposition in the Calhoun-area board seat being vacated by Tracy Nordstrom. Scott Vreeland was endorsed for another term in his riverside district.
Park Board citywide Commissioners Tom Nordyke and Mary Merrill Anderson won endorsement for another term, and John Erwin was endorsed to return to the board after sitting out one term.
Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438
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