12 Facts About Abdi Warsame

Abdi Warsame resigned from the position in 2020 to become the head of the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority.

Abdi Warsame earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business from the Middlesex University.

Abdi Warsame holds a master's degree in International Business from the University of Greenwich.

Abdi Warsame first entered politics in 2011, while working on Mohamud Noor's campaign for a state Senate seat on a DFL ticket.

Abdi Warsame was the founder and spokesperson for the Citizen's Committee for Fair Redistricting, which took part in the Minneapolis redistricting process.

Abdi Warsame chaired the Cedar Riverside-Neighborhood Revitalization Program and served as executive director of the Riverside Plaza Tenants Association, which represents the tenants of Riverside Plaza.

Abdi Warsame ran in the 2013 Minneapolis municipal elections to represent Ward 6 on the Minneapolis City Council.

Abdi Warsame's campaign was criticized by DFLer Robert Lilligren's caucus captain Maryam Marne Zafar, who alleged that Abdi Warsame supporters tried to turn voters away from Lilligren by highlighting the fact that Lilligren was openly gay.

Lilligren charged that Abdi Warsame supporters had capitalized on language barriers to win votes.

On November 5,2013, Abdi Warsame was elected to represent the predominantly East-African Ward 6 on the Minneapolis City Council.

Abdi Warsame's election set civic precedence in the Somali American community of Minneapolis, in which his campaign energized and mobilized this sub-community's powerful voting bloc.

Abdi Warsame is a resident of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, which is home to the largest concentration of Somalis outside of East Africa.