Minnesota Today

The Minneapolis-St. Paul airport expects to see canceled flights starting Friday after federal officials said they're cutting back air traffic by about 10 percent due to the government shutdown. Patrick Knight, a businessman and former Marine, has joined the race to be the Republican candidate for Minnesota governor.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Emily Reese. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS. 

After a second round of ballot counting on Wednesday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey won a third term in office. Frey surpassed the needed 50-percent threshold of ranked choice votes to claim the win. His closest challenger, Sen. Omar Fateh, earned a little more than 44 percent of the vote. In St. Paul, the capital city's new mayor will be state Rep. Kaohly Her. She ousted two-term incumbent Melvin Carter. Her says she will seek legislative support for St. Paul projects. Her term as mayor begins in January.The St. Paul City Council is expected to vote next week on a measure to ban military-style rifles and guns without serial numbers.

Election results: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has been narrowly elected to a third term at City Hall. And in St. Paul, state Rep. Kaohly Her will be the next mayor, unseating incumbent Mayor Melvin Carter.

State Rep. Kaohly Her made history early this morning by becoming the first Hmong American and first woman elected to lead the city of St. Paul. Her defeated incumbent mayor Melvin Carter after a second round of tabulation of ranked choice ballots. Her campaigned on revitalizing the downtown and Midway neighborhoods, and working to make the city more business-friendly and responsive.There was no winner declared in the race for Minneapolis mayor Wednesday morning. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, no candidate reached the threshold needed to be declared the winner after first choice ballots were tallied. Incumbent Jacob Frey received nearly 42 percent of first choice votes. That's about 10 percentage points ahead of his closest opponent state Sen. Omar Fateh. Tabulation resumes at 9 a.m. Wednesday.Minnesota Democrats will maintain a narrow edge in the state Senate after the DFLer won a suburban special election and Republicans won a seat in Wright County. And a longtime St. Cloud nonprofit leader has won a special election for Stearns County commissioner. Voters in Duluth approved a ballot initiative that allows tenants to pay for minor repairs and then deduct the cost from their next month’s rent. The initiative passed overwhelmingly with about 69 percent of people voting in favor of it. The measure is the first of its kind in Minnesota.Primary care nurse practitioners, doctors and physician assistants at Allina Health are on a one-day strike Wednesday. A St. Paul-based home health care company is shutting down and laying off about 400 employees. Dependable Home Healthcare has notified the state its client care services will end in January. Staff and clients were notified Tuesday. The company employs hundreds of personal care assistants and support staff who work with people with disabilities.Hormel Foods Corporation is reducing its workforce. The Austin-based company is cutting around 250 jobs as part of a restructuring. The reductions will come through layoffs, reducing open positions and buyouts.

Today is Election Day. There are races for mayor, city council and school board in communities around the state, as well as ballot questions.A report released today flags issues related to internal controls in the governor's office. And Austin-based Hormel Foods Corporation announced it would cut around 250 jobs as part of a restructuring. Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

It's Election Day across the state. Voters are selecting school board members, county commissioners and deciding other local races. In St. Paul, there's a mayoral election. Minneapolis voters also selecting a mayor today — and all 13 members of the City Council. Six candidates are facing off today over three seats on the Anoka-Hennepin school board, which oversees the state’s largest school district. Two slates of candidates — one conservative and one progressive — are vying to claim those seats. Groups have poured nearly half a million dollars into the races, far outpacing normal spending for a down-ballot election. Dozens of Minnesota school districts are asking taxpayers to OK operating levies.Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao is returning to Minnesota. Thao was released Monday from a federal prison in Kentucky after serving time for his role in the murder of George Floyd.Despite last week's deal with China, U.S. soybean farmers are still having to turn to domestic processing plants — including a handful in Minnesota — to offload their harvests.

Tomorrow is Election Day for many communities across Minnesota. Most polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Minnesota offers same-day registration, as long as you have proof of residence. Open enrollment for state health care plans started Saturday, and many Minnesotans are seeing steeper prices for coverage next year.Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth is running for governor. In an interview with MPR News ahead of the announcement, the Cold Spring Republican described herself as being best positioned among a crowded Republican field to take on DFL Gov. Tim Walz, who is seeking a third term.Demuth climbed to the role of speaker earlier this year under a power-sharing deal in the tied House. Six other Republicans are in the governor's race so far. Demuth’s entrance into the race is drawing sharp reaction in both political parties.Tuesday is Election Day, but voter turnout is expected to be low. For presidential elections, Minnesota typically ranks as No. 1 in voter turnout. But for local elections — even with this year’s high-profile mayoral races in Minneapolis and St. Paul — fewer people will cast ballots. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon says it’s important to vote in local elections because they tend to have a more-direct impact on people's lives.As the federal shutdown continues to jeopardize food assistance programs, local nonprofits are stepping in to help low-income Minnesotans. The Greater Twin Cities United Way has launched an emergency food relief campaign. And it is asking Minnesotans to donate or volunteer.The number of grey wolves around Voyageurs National Park has dropped significantly over the past two years, according to a new report by researchers with the Voyageurs Wolf Project.

Many Medicaid service providers have been scrambling this week to understand how a new Minnesota audit will play out. And China has agreed to buy soybeans from the United States again, ending its boycott of the American crop.Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

Some Minnesota disability service providers are concerned about the state's plan to pause payments during an audit of Medicaid program billings.And a closely watched case involving a Minnesota gun law won't get sped up to the state's top court.Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

The federal government shutdown could mean more than 440,000 Minnesotans will lose their SNAP food assistance benefits in a matter of days. That loss also will hurt the more than 3,600 retailers across the state that accept SNAP, including grocery stores, convenience marts and farmers markets. Officials say every dollar in SNAP benefits generates up to $1.50 in local economic activity.Minnesota is preparing to lay off around 100 state health workers amid the government shutdown. The Minnesota Association of Professional employees union says notices are going out Thursday at the health department with layoffs of workers in the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program.Eleven people were arrested in a sit-in at Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's office on Tuesday. They stayed in the building several hours after closing and were arrested around midnight for trespassing. Protesters are asking Frey to enact several policies strengthening the city's separation ordinance which bars local police from collaborating with federal immigration enforcement. They want a citywide ban on law enforcement officers wearing face coverings and arrests of federal officers who break that rule.

Gov. Tim Walz says his administration has hired a third-party entity to audit Medicaid programs to make sure money is being spent as intended. And TSA workers are continuing to work without pay during the government shutdown. Oct. 24 marked TSA's first pay period without a check.Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister.

Air traffic controllers spoke to travelers at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Tuesday about going unpaid while working during the federal government shutdown. A St. Paul man is charged with threatening to kill U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. Notices filed with the state show Minneapolis-based Target is laying off at least 815 of its corporate employees in the Twin Cities. That includes more than 500 workers at Target’s downtown headquarters and nearly 300 workers at its northern campus in Brooklyn Park. Target says the layoffs are set to take effect Jan. 3.Eden Prairie-based UnitedHealth Group reported better-than-expected earnings in its third quarter as it seeks to regain its footing. Last spring, the company suspended its financial outlook for the year amid higher-than-expected medical costs from its customers. UnitedHealth is dropping some of its Medicare Advantage programs next year resulting in about one million fewer customers.Minnesota members of the Caribbean Disaster Relief Fund say they’ve been working nonstop since before Hurricane Melissa made landfall Tuesday as a Category 5 storm. The hurricane brought destructive winds and flooding rain. A community altar honoring the Mexican Day of the Dead opens this evening at the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis. It’s part of a larger project connecting art, ancestry and ancient traditions.

Hundreds of Target corporate employees in the Twin Cities received layoff notices today, part of previously announced plans by the retailer to streamline its operations.And Minneapolis Public Schools educators announced overnight that they've voted to authorize a strike, as contract negotiations stall.More from today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Kelly Bleyer. Music by Gary Meister.

Employees at Target’s Minneapolis headquarters are learning more Tuesday about expected layoffs. The company is cutting about 1,800 corporate jobs in an effort to streamline operations. That includes about 1,000 layoffs and closing hundreds of open positions.Next week, voters in two Senate districts will fill two vacancies and possibly flip control of the chamber. State Capitol security leaders are assigning an investigator to exclusively probe threats against elected officials. Threats against lawmakers, state executives and their offices have more than doubled compared to last year.Four Minnesota Head Start programs may not get their federal funding to operate if the government shutdown continues into November. Four Minneapolis mayoral candidates outlined their visions for the city during an MPR News/Star Tribune debate Monday.

Gov. Tim Walz announced Monday $4 million in emergency state funding for Minnesota's food shelves as the federal shutdown continues. Funding comes as the federal government shutdown threatens to halt grocery benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. An old government center in downtown Buffalo could soon make way for new development.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Elena See. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS. 

A state lawmaker is pushing for laws to protect students from inappropriate relationships in K-12 schools. Two Minnesota women pleaded guilty Tuesday in a scheme to defraud taxpayers by overbilling Medicaid for substance abuse treatment.Minneapolis police have arrested a person suspected of throwing two Molotov cocktails into an ice cream shop. It happened at Fletcher’s Ice Cream and Cafe on East Hennepin Avenue. No one was hurt.Advocates pressuring the state Board of Investment to cut financial ties to Israel staged a sit-in Tuesday at the Retirement Systems Building in St. Paul. The protest was planned for the same day as the board’s quarterly meeting. The protesters refused to leave the building when it closed for the day, and several were arrested.An asphalt and aggregate products business with many locations across Minnesota says it will be closing some of those facilities by the end of the year with nearly 300 employees losing their jobs. Minnesota Paving and Materials sent a notice to the state announcing the permanent closure of 14 of its operations in the state, including quarries in Owatonna and New Ulm and an asphalt plant in Kasota. The company’s notice did not offer any details on why it’s closing those locations.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem traveled to Minnesota Friday to deliver remarks on the ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations. Noem’s visit comes at a time of growing tension over immigration enforcement across the country. In Minnesota, immigrant rights groups have urged state and local leaders to push back against expanded federal enforcement. Minneapolis-based Target plans to lay off about a thousand corporate employees as part of an effort to streamline its operations.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Kelly Bleyer. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS.