Minneapolis Rejects Effort to Replace Police Department

A majority of voters in Minneapolis, Minnesota voted against a measure that would have replaced the city's police department with a new public safety department.

The initiative would have removed minimum funding requirements for the police department and would have divided control of public safety between the City Council and the mayor. The new public safety department would have likely included police officers "if necessary," social workers and other officials tasked with employing "a comprehensive public health approach" to protect the community. Roughly 56% of voters opposed it, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State's office, with nearly all precincts reporting. It needed 51% approval to pass. 

The decision was covered across the spectrum. Coverage from left-rated sources sometimes framed the news as indicative of the continued need to push for police reform and the difficulty of accomplishing it. Some reports from right-rated outlets highlighted Minneapolis' voters concerns about crime; others framed the proposal as vague and the idea of replacing the police department as misguided.