My name is Aisha Chughtai — I am a renter, immigrants rights activist, labor organizer, and eldest daughter to a Muslim immigrant family. For the last 16 months, I’ve had the honor of serving Ward 10 as our Councilmember. When I first ran, I told you I would fight shoulder-to-shoulder with working-class people and ensure your voices are heard. I promised that together we’d get to work building a safe and vibrant community. And that’s just what we’ve done.

Together, we’ve shown the wealthiest folks in this city, and the politicians they’ve bought, that we are powerful. They know that like you, I will continue showing up for those with the highest need in our community. That’s why they’re afraid of us – they’re afraid of you. But we know that the power is with the people, it’s with us. And together, we will use our power to make sure everyone in our community, not just the wealthy and powerful, is safe.

I’m running for re-election because I’ve fought to keep our communities safe. And while crime is down, safety is about so much more than that. I’m running for re-election because everything we’ve achieved represents an inch of progress when we need to achieve miles of change to make sure everyone feels safe in all aspects of life.

We know a safe city is one where everyone is housed, which is why we’ve protected tenants, brought more shelter beds to the ward, and fought for a humane encampment response. We know a safe city is one where workers live in dignity, which is why we’ve stood shoulder-to-shoulder on the picket lines. We know a safe city is one where our neighborhoods are thriving, which is why we’re making biking and transit more accessible and helping small, local businesses stay in our ward.

We know a safe city is one where vulnerable people feel welcome, which is why we’ve welcomed refugees, secured access to reproductive care, and implemented legislation to protect our queer neighbors. And we know a safe city is one where the police are accountable to the people they serve, which is why we’ve made sure that mental health first responders will handle mental health emergencies, why we expanded structures of community oversight, and why we’ll fight above and beyond the consent decree to ensure we have true community control of the police.

We’re on the path to a safer, more just Minneapolis. We’ve done so much together in our first sixteen months. When we build power together, we can truly make this ward and this city safe for all of our neighbors. We can build a city and a ward where everyone has what they need to thrive, a Minneapolis that honors people’s dignity and demonstrates that a safer, better world is possible. Thank you for choosing me to fight alongside you over the last year. I’m excited to earn your support and vote again by Election Day on November 7th.

In solidarity,

Aisha Chughtai