BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. — Bernice David-Cooper could hardly contain her excitement Tuesday night as supporters celebrated her election as the first Liberian woman to serve on the Brooklyn Park City Council at an Election Night watch party at Plush Restaurant and Lounge.
Wearing a bright orange jacket, David-Cooper clasped her hands and opened her mouth in excitement as supporters gathered around her.
“I really can’t wait to be that missing voice on that table,” she told the cheering crowd.
David-Cooper defeated former Councilmember Tonja West-Hafner by 229 votes in the city’s West District, receiving 3,583 votes, or 51.21%, compared with West-Hafner’s 3,354 votes, or 47.93%, according to unofficial results from the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office. Write-in candidates received 60 votes, with all 25 precincts reporting.
Her victory marked a milestone for Brooklyn Park’s Liberian American community and capped a campaign built on grassroots organizing, family support and efforts to bring voters to the polls.
David-Cooper becomes the second Liberian to serve on the City Council, following Wynfred Russell, who was sworn into office in 2019 as Brooklyn Park’s first Black council member.
Getting voters to the polls
On Election Day, David-Cooper was still working to bring residents to the polls.
Dressed in an orange campaign shirt and matching cap, she helped Wilfred, a Brooklyn Park resident who suffered a stroke and uses a cane, get transportation to vote.
Outside a residential building, David-Cooper stood beside Wilfred near a vehicle as he prepared to make the trip.
Check out: Mshale Black Ballot – Election results for Black candidates around Minnesota.
The encounter illustrated the personal attention involved in the campaign’s voter outreach efforts, particularly in an election ultimately decided by fewer than 250 votes.
Community members and organizations also participated in efforts to encourage voter turnout, including the United Bassa Sisters, whose members helped provide transportation to polling places.
At Zanewood Community School in the West District, voters made their way to privacy booths set up inside the school’s gymnasium.
Among those casting ballots was Swen Eugene Jeanu, a Liberian immigrant who has lived in Brooklyn Park for 30 years and is retired from manufacturing.
“I voted blue up and down the ballot, Klobuchar all the way to Bernice,” Jeanu said, referring to U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Brooklyn Park City Council candidate Bernice David-Cooper.
Jeanu said he had been looking forward to the opportunity to vote for a Liberian woman for the City Council.
“It has been a long time coming,” he said.
Referring to the election of Wynfred Russell to the council, Jeanu said it had taken “too long, my brother, to get a Liberian woman in there.”
Jeanu said he was hopeful David-Cooper would win and explained that he prefers voting in person on Election Day rather than casting an early ballot.
“Especially a day like today where I can maybe get her to the council,” he said.
His comments reflected the importance some Liberian American residents attached to the election, viewing David-Cooper’s candidacy as an opportunity to expand their community’s representation in local government.
From Liberia to Brooklyn Park
David-Cooper came to the United States from Liberia at age 12, initially settling in St. Paul. She graduated from Arlington High School in 2007 before earning a bachelor’s degree in social work from the College of Saint Benedict and a master’s degree in social work from Augsburg University.
She works for Hennepin County as a police-embedded social worker. She and her husband have lived in Brooklyn Park for nine years.
When she filed for office in May, accompanied by about a dozen supporters and family members, David-Cooper told Mshale that her decision to run was rooted in her connection to the community.
“I’m running for City Council to give back to the community that has given me so much,” she said.
She also emphasized improving access to city resources and supporting neighborhood businesses.
“I’ll bring common sense leadership back to City Hall by making resources available to all communities,” David-Cooper said. “That means educating our families on what is available to them from the city and supporting our small businesses as much as possible, especially in my district, which is a small business hub.”
Her professional experience and immigrant background became central themes during the campaign.
At an Aug. 27 candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Brooklyn Park, Osseo and Maple Grove, David-Cooper discussed her service on the Brooklyn Park police chief’s multicultural advisory board and her involvement in discussions surrounding the city’s policy generally preventing police officers from asking residents about their immigration status during encounters.
She said the policy was particularly important as federal immigration enforcement activity created fear among immigrant residents.
David-Cooper also argued that traditional methods of public engagement were not always sufficient to reach residents in the West District, which has a large immigrant population. She suggested town halls and different communication approaches to strengthen connections between City Hall and residents.
Asked how she would listen to constituents, David-Cooper pointed to her clinical social-work experience, saying it had taught her to listen to understand people’s concerns rather than simply wait for an opportunity to respond.
Her opponent, West-Hafner, emphasized her previous council service and experience in housing, economic and community development.
A changing political landscape
David-Cooper’s election adds a new chapter to the political participation of Liberian Americans in Minnesota.
Brooklyn Park is home to a substantial African immigrant population, including residents with roots in Liberia, whose civic organizations, churches, businesses and community networks have become part of the city’s social and political life.
David-Cooper was part of a slate of candidates aligned with incumbent Mayor Hollies Winston that also included incumbent Councilmembers Christian Eriksen and Nichole Klonowski.
Winston won reelection Tuesday, receiving 16,353 votes, or 55.26%, compared with challenger Shelle Page’s 13,014 votes, or 43.97%, according to unofficial results.
The mayoral and council campaigns unfolded amid debates over housing, economic development, public safety and the city’s future.
For David-Cooper, the narrow margin of victory underscored the significance of reaching individual voters.
Her election will give West District residents a new representative on a council responsible for decisions affecting neighborhood development, city services, public safety and municipal spending.
It also places a Liberian American woman in an elected leadership position at Brooklyn Park City Hall for the first time.
Family sacrifices behind the victory
At the Election Night celebration, David-Cooper reserved some of her most heartfelt remarks for the family members who supported her during the campaign.
“Tonight I want to thank my husband,” she said.
“Thank you so much for being the mom and dad of the day and just keeping our home structure while I was out there campaigning.”
The room erupted in applause and cheers as David-Cooper acknowledged her husband’s role in caring for their family while she spent time on the campaign trail.
She also thanked her parents and extended family.
“I want to thank my mom and dad for always being there for me,” she said.
David-Cooper credited the people around her for helping make her victory possible.
“When you have support, when you have collaboration, when you have people who want to see you win,” she said.
Referring to the group of candidates aligned with Winston and state Rep. Huldah Momanyi-Hiltsley, David-Cooper declared, “I was on the winning team.”
The celebration stood in contrast to the quieter scenes earlier in the day, when residents such as Wilfred made their way to the polls and voters such as Jeanu spoke about what the election meant to them.
For Jeanu, who has spent three decades living in Brooklyn Park, the prospect of electing a Liberian woman to the City Council had been a long time coming.
By the end of Election Day, that prospect had become reality.
And for David-Cooper, the victory meant that the voice she had long hoped to bring to the council table would finally have a seat.
The election results remain unofficial pending canvassing.
Richard Ooga contributed to this report.
About Tom Gitaa, Editor-in-Chief
Born and raised in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa, Tom is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Mshale which has been reporting on the news and culture of African immigrants in the United States since 1995. He has a BA in Business from Metro State University and a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He was the original host of Talking Drum, the signature current affairs show on the African Broadcasting Network (ABN-America), which was available nationwide in the United States via the Dish Network satellite service. On the show, he interviewed Nobel laureates such as 2004 Nobel Peace prize winner, Professor Wangari Maathai, the first woman from Africa to win the peace prize and heads of states. Tom has served and chaired various boards including Global Minnesota (formerly Minnesota International Center), the sixth largest World Affairs Council in the United States. He has previously served as the first Black President of the Board of Directors at Books for Africa. He also serves on the board of the Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium. He has previously served two terms on the board of the United Nations Association. An avid runner, he retired from running full marathons after turning 50 and now only focuses on training for half marathons.
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