Sen. Fateh campaign violated Campaign Practices Act, fined for yard signs

Judge: Fateh campaign may have broke state law

Sen. Omar Fateh's campaign for Minneapolis mayor may have broke state law, a judge said. FOX 9's Mike Manzoni has more.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Following the revocation of the Minnesota DFL’s endorsement of his campaign for Minneapolis Mayor, a court has ruled that Sen. Omar Fateh broke Minnesota’s campaign laws by illegally distributing yard signs that were knowingly no longer accurate.

Sen. Omar Fateh endorsement, revocation

The backstory:

Sen. Fateh won the Minnesota DFL's endorsement in the mayoral race in July. However, the endorsement was challenged by current Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's campaign, which raised questions about errors during the voting process at the convention.

In August, the state DFL's Constitution, Bylaws, and Rules Committee overturned the endorsement. In September, the Minneapolis DFL then unsuccessfully challenged the Minnesota DFL’s decision to revoke its endorsement of State Sen. Fateh.

DFL denounces Fateh endorsement for Mpls mayor

The Minnesota DFL has revoked Omar Fateh's endorsement in the race for Minneapolis mayor. Fateh received the endorsement after a convention in July that some describe as chaotic. FOX 9's Mike Manzoni has the latest.

Illegal yard signs ruling

Dig deeper:

Following the endorsement, and prior to its revocation, Sen. Fateh’s campaign had begun distributing yard signs with a "DFL endorsed" emblem on them.

However, a ruling by three administrative law judges filed on Oct. 1, 2025, has decided that Fateh’s campaign is in violation of Minnesota’s Fair Campaign Practices Act for distributing the inaccurate campaign materials.

The ruling notes that, "[Fateh] distributed the campaign literature and yard signs during an Aug. 23, 2025, event knowing the literature bore markings claiming an endorsement Fateh no longer had because [he] did not want to lose a day of campaigning… [Fateh] did not consider stopping the operations of its campaign or holding a door-knocking event without distributing campaign materials even though the materials were no longer accurate."

What's next:

Fateh's campaign for mayor has been fined $500 by the court for violating the Minnesota Fair Campaign Practices Act by continuing to falsely claim to have the DFL endorsement after it was revoked.

He must also stop distributing the campaign materials – something he has previously stated that his team has already done.