ST PAUL, Minn. — They strode across the stage at the Ordway Center to thunderous applause and took their place in history. The newly minted St. Paul City Council will be an all-female panel for the first time in the city's 170-year history.
Four newcomers — Anika Bowie, Saura Jost, Hwa Jeong Kim, and Cheniqua Johnson — have joined the returning members Rebecca Noecker, Nelsie Yang, and Mitra Jalali. Together, they represent the youngest and most diverse governing body ever to take office in this town which some have nicknamed "St. Paula" in honor of their electoral feat.
All seven women are younger than 40, and six of them identify as BIPOC — Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. According to the Census Bureau, only 51% of the city's 307,000 identify as white only, compared to 82% statewide.
In their first meeting Wednesday, the council elected Jalali as their new president. She grew up in St. Paul, the daughter of a Korean immigrant mother and an Iranian immigrant father.
"I know the lifelong experience of being asked, 'What are you? Where are you from?' Here. I'm from here. I love you Mom and Bubba for the life experiences that brought me to this stage."
Jalali said the council will tackle a wide variety of issues, including the housing crisis and rent stabilization. The previous council exempted new construction from the city's three percent cap on rent increases. A coalition of landlords, construction trade unions and bar owners supported other candidates, but to no avail.
The incoming council president said she's engaged with people on social media that are fearful of what the seven progressive Democrats will do.
"A lot of people who were comfortable with majority male, majority white institutions in nearly 170 years of city history are suddenly sharply concerned about representation," Jalali told the Ordway crowd, eliciting a long outburst of cheers and laughter. "My thoughts and prayers are with them in this challenging time."
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, in his address, noted that he was the only person of color on the council when he was sworn in back in 2008. That same council had only one woman, Kathy Lantry.
"My, how things have changed!"
Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan said her daughter won't have to grow up thinking that women are a minority in government and leadership roles.
"For many women, it's the women that came before us — our aunties, our mothers, our grandmothers, who earned those stripes for us, who brought us that chair at the table so we could join it right away," Flanagan said. "We don't simply have to wait to be invited. We get to sit at these tables and be the people who make decisions because of their sacrifices. And we don't have to 'wait our turn.' Our turn is now!"
Council Member Rebecca Noecker said she welcomes the chance to serve with six other women, to chart the direction of the city.
"This community is what this is all about. We are so lucky to live in this time," Noecker said. "And in this city. And in community with one another."
This comes 68 years after Elizabeth Decoursey became the first female ever elected to the council.