• It was an online survey open to all residents of Minneapolis Ward 2 between May and August 2022.
• It was a way for Council Member Wonsley to learn more about residents’ priorities.
• It was an experiment to see if we could bring more residents into the political process.
• All questions including demographics were optional.

How we spread the word

• We sent mail to all residents at roughly 11,000 addresses in Ward 2 directing them to the survey webpage.
• We posted on social media and the Ward 2 Email Update.
• We publicized it through neighborhood associations, unions, and community organizations.
• The survey was available in English and Somali.

Who responded

• Approximately 1,000 residents, which is about 3% of the Ward population.
• Students were underrepresented because the survey was open during the summer, when many students are out of town.
• The respondents were roughly representative of the racial demographics of the Ward.
• The respondents were on average older than the Ward as a whole.
• Homeowners were overrepresented, renters were underrepresented.
• The south part of Ward 2 (Longfellow, Cooper, and Seward) was overrepresented.
• The survey instructions said it was only for Ward 2 residents, but it did not require any verification that the respondent lives in Ward 2.

Survey results

• We are confident that we engaged some residents who do not ordinarily participate in local politics.
• The participation was still far too low to draw any firm conclusions from the data.
• The survey helped us learn more about ways to reach residents.

Download and read the responses to the Ward 2 survey.