The city of Minneapolis could be headed for a “never-ending loop” in a dispute over the reappointment of its commissioner of community safety, according to the city attorney’s office.
The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor Jacob Frey are at odds over whether to reinstate current commissioner Todd Barnette to another term. The council voted last week not to confirm him. Frey vetoed that vote, and says he wants to keep Barnette in his position.
The council is expected to try to override that veto at next week’s meeting, but they likely won’t have the votes. The council denied Barnette’s reappointment in a 7-6 vote; they would need nine votes to override the veto.
The city attorney’s office says a failure to override the veto could get the city stuck in a legal stalemate. In that case, Barnette’s nomination would stand — but he can’t take the job without approval from the council.
In a lengthy memo this week, the city attorney’s office said the only way out of that loop would be for Frey to nominate someone new, or for enough council members to change their votes to either approve Barnette for another term or override the mayor’s veto.
“Our City Charter forces the Council and the Mayor to find compromise — and compromise is the heart of democracy,” Frey said in a statement responding to the city attorney’s memo.
Several council members who voted against Barnette’s reappointment said they want Frey to nominate a new candidate.
“The council followed the process. The question now is whether the mayor will respect our decision or continue using a never-ending loop of vetoes to strong-arm the council and distract from the important public safety work we must do together,” council member Aurin Chowdhury said in a statement.
Barnette has said he wants to continue in the job, and plans to accept another term if the council and the mayor can agree to it.