Minneapolis City Council votes down Toddrick Barnette's reappointment as community safety commissioner

The Minneapolis City Council on Thursday voted against the reappointment of Toddrick Barnette as the commissioner of community safety.

Mayor Jacob Frey nominated Barnette for reappointment earlier this month. The council voted 7-6 against it.

"To put it plainly, in his time in this role, I don't believe Toddrick Barnette has met the mark," City Council President Elliott Payne said. "In my experience, Mr. Barnette has been far too absent and often disconnected from the role. Other Council Members have brought up his and his staff lack of presence at important meetings and lack of transparency and communication from his office."

Payne also cited what he called "preventable tragedies and mishandling" of cases under Barnette's watch, specifically those of Davis Moturi, Allison Lussier and Mariah Samuels. Moturi was shot in front of his home in 2024, allegedly by a neighbor who was the subject of more than 20 police reports before the shooting. Lussier and Samuels were victims of domestic violence, and their families say Minneapolis didn't do enough to keep them safe.  

Barnette was appointed to the role in 2023. The commissioner is tasked with overseeing the police and fire departments, 911, emergency management and neighborhood safety. He took over for Cedric Alexander, who inaugurated the position and retired after a year.

Other councilors who joined Payne in voting against Barnette's reappointment argued that he failed to control overspending and poorly managed the city's violence interruptor program. That was the breaking point for Councilor Jamal Osman, arguing that Barnette made a mistake by not funding violence interruptors in the Somali-dominated Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. 

"We've been trying to improve public safety since 2021. I haven't seen really any improvement," Osman said.   

When Frey renominated Barnette, his office said the commissioner's "leadership is delivering results." The mayor's office touted resurgent police staffing levels, diversity in the police force and "safe streets." It credited Barnette with helping to strengthen the city's emergency response, which "proved critical during the response to the Annunciation school shooting."

Responding to the council's vote, Frey said that he is issuing a veto in a bid to provide Barnette another term; a spokesperson said that no one has issued a veto over a cabinet appointee before, at least not since 2013, when the current city government structure was established. That same spokesperson said that the city attorney is working to confirm procedural steps. 

As he fights for Barnette, Frey accused councilors of playing politics. 

"The vote that happened today was neither about Todd Barnette's qualifications nor was it about his record. The vote that took place today was about vote trading and political gamesmanship," Frey said, declining to name specific council members. 

Barnette said that he needs to confer with his family about next steps, but said he doesn't plan to walk away. When asked whether any of the council's concerns were legitimate, he said there could be room for improvement in communication.

"Where Minneapolis goes, the state goes," Barnette said, "we have a lot more work to do so that more of our residents can feel it, they gotta feel like they're safe." 

Police Chief Brian O'Hara expressed disappointment with the council's vote on Barnette; it's possible that O'Hara's anticipated confirmation vote could be equally divisive. 

Councilors raised several issues related to the Minneapolis Police Department while discussing Barnette's effectiveness, once again putting a spotlight on O'Hara. Last year, in 2025, the Minneapolis Police Department overspent by about $19.6 million. In January alone, the police department spent $5.2 million responding to Operation Metro Surge, about double the amount of budgeted overtime. 

Frey said that he wanted to take care of cabinet position nominations first before nominating department heads like O'Hara. He blocked questions about O'Hara's future from reaching the chief directly during Thursday afternoon's press conference, instead reaffirming support and stating that Barnette's fight should not inform what will happen with O'Hara's nomination vote. 

Councilor Osman, who voted against Barnette, said that he is supporting O'Hara for another term as chief of police. 

"He has changed the leadership of the police, we are heading in the right direction," Osman said