Minneapolis voters reject charter amendment to replace police department, AP projects

Minneapolis voters rejected a charter amendment to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a Department of Public Safety.

Minneapolis voters rejected a charter amendment to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a Department of Public Safety on Tuesday, according to a projection by The Associated Press. The department would have taken a "comprehensive public health approach" to policing.

In addition to removing the police department from the city's charter, the amendment would have removed the requirement to employ 1.7 officers for every 1,000 residents. It also would have replaced the police chief with a commissioner, who would be nominated by the mayor and approved by the city council.

Supporters of the charter amendment included Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and the rapper and singer Lizzo, who posted her support for the measure in her Instagram story on Tuesday. Many supporters connect the charter amendment to calls for police reform that followed George Floyd's killing last year.

"​​It's a vote for us to all reimagine public safety and to move away from the type of systems that have not produced safety for all communities," Rashad Robinson, a spokesperson for Color of Change PAC, said before Tuesday's vote.