Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega, the longest serving member of the county board, informed supporters on Friday that he would not run for re-election next November, ending his 31-year career in county politics.

His decision comes about three weeks after Rebecca Noecker, the president of the St. Paul City Council, informed key contacts that she planned to run for his District 5 seat on the county board, and three days after she made her campaign announcement official.

Noecker on Friday said she was grateful for Ortega’s years of service. “Thirty years is remarkable,” she said.

Ortega, who is currently the board chair, became the first person of color elected to the county board in 1994. He has frequently served as either board chair or chair of the county’s regional rail authority, which played key roles in advocating for a second daily Amtrak train to Chicago, the renovation of the downtown St. Paul Union Depot transit hub and the launch of Metro Transit’s Green Line light rail service.

He had said last month he planned to seek re-election despite facing a challenge from Noecker, but he would wait to make his decision official between Thanksgiving and Christmas. He’s since had time to reflect on his options.

“It is with mixed feelings that I share that I will not be seeking reelection next year,” wrote Ortega to key contacts on Friday. “This was not an easy decision for me because we are working on so many important, exciting things this year and I would love to see them through. But I’m lucky to be healthy and I am excited to spend time with my mother, my kids and my grandkids – four generations of Ortegas – as well as family and friends around the world. And I know time is precious.”

Ortega said the county, which launched its own Housing and Redevelopment Authority levy in 2023, has funded construction of more than 2,000 housing units and invested more than $50 million in affordable housing in just two years.

“With your help, we built the Union Depot, the Green Line, and the Gold Line transit ways,” he wrote. “We built the Roseville Library, the busiest in the state, to the highest environmental standards possible.”

With Ortega’s urging, the county in 2013 purchased the 427-acre Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant, the former grounds of a military munitions factory, for the future Rice Creek Commons development in Arden Hills, which is still largely in its planning stages. The Micro Control Company broke ground there in April for a new headquarters within a 40-acre parcel on the north end of the site.

In 2015, the county began clearing the former county jail property and the neighboring West Publishing offices along Kellogg Boulevard in downtown St. Paul to make room for the future RiversEdge development, which has yet to get off the ground.

Ortega said he looked forward to seeing both projects someday “bring jobs, opportunity and vitality to Ramsey County and to expand the tax base.”

Had he stayed in the running for re-election, Ortega would have likely faced tough questions about a long-planned streetcar or bus rapid transit system along West Seventh Street, which the county abandoned last year following years of debate over the proper transit mode and alignment.

The county instead redirected some $730 million in planned funding from its half-cent sales tax to other road and transit projects, most of them disconnected from the corridor, leaving the long-awaited reconstruction of West Seventh Street further in doubt.

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La primera reunión del Comité de Immigration Justice (Justicia Migratoria), uno de los 17 comités que el alcalde electo ha reunido para asesorarse durante la transición a la alcaldía, está prevista para finales de esta semana. Este comité trabajará “para desarrollar la mejor vía para defender y reforzar nuestras políticas de santuario”, según ha declarado un portavoz.

El alcalde electo, Zohran Mamdani, anunció el mes pasado su equipo de transición. (X/ZohranKMamdani)

Este artículo se publicó originalmente en inglés el 11 de diciembre. Traducido por Daniel Parra. Read the English version here.

El comité de transición del alcalde electo ha recaudado $3 millones de dólares y se está preparando para comenzar a debatir políticas.

Alrededor de 400 expertos y defensores, que forman parte de los 17 comités, están trabajando con el equipo de transición del alcalde electo Zohran Mamdani y ofrecerán recomendaciones políticas y sugerirán nombramientos para la próxima administración. 

Tras semanas de planificación se espera que la primera reunión del Comité de Immigration Justice (Justicia Migratoria) tenga lugar a finales de esta semana. Estará dirigido por Grace Bonilla, directora ejecutiva de la organización sin ánimo de lucro United Way of New York City.

 
“A través del Comité de Justicia para los Inmigrantes, estamos involucrando a líderes del gobierno local y estatal, organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro, sindicatos, el mundo académico, empresas y otros sectores para desarrollar el mejor camino a seguir para defender y reforzar nuestras políticas santuario”, afirmó Monica Klein, portavoz del equipo de transición, en un comunicado.

La plataforma de campaña de Mamdani incluía el compromiso de reforzar el conjunto de leyes santuario de Nueva York, que la ciudad comenzó a promulgar desde finales de la década de los ochenta. 

Estas leyes estipulan las circunstancias en las cuales la policía de Nueva York y el Departamento Correccional de la ciudad pueden detener personas por solicitud del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas de Estados Unidos (ICE por sus siglas en inglés), y cómo y cuándo las agencias gubernamentales de la ciudad pueden interactuar y compartir información con ICE.

Los partidarios de las políticas santuario afirman que estas ayudan a garantizar que los inmigrantes neoyorquinos no tengan que vivir en la sombra, especialmente a la hora de denunciar delitos y otros abusos. Sin embargo, la administración Trump ha puesto en la mira a las ciudades con leyes santuario, por ser un obstáculo para llevar a cabo su agenda migratoria, llegando incluso a demandar a la ciudad de Nueva York en julio.

Este año, con el regreso de Donald Trump a la Casa Blanca, las detenciones de inmigrantes por parte de ICE han aumentado en la ciudad de Nueva York y en todo el país. El lunes, el alcalde electo Mamdani utilizó su plataforma para explicar a los residentes cuáles son sus derechos en caso de encontrarse con ICE. 

Según un informe de New York Immigration Coalition, el número de “detenciones comunitarias”—en las que se detiene a personas en sus hogares, en el trabajo o en las calles— ha aumentado en todo el estado desde que Trump regresó a la presidencia.

Este tipo de detenciones son ahora cinco veces más frecuentes que las detenciones realizadas en colaboración con la policía local o estatal, o las detenciones con otros grupos de trabajo, que eran tácticas más comunes bajo la administración Biden, según el informe.

Defensores y miembros del Concejo de la ciudad de los barrios con una alta concentración de inmigrantes han observado un aumento de la actividad de ICE en sus distritos.

El comité de Immigration Justice está formado por 25 líderes de los principales grupos de defensa de inmigrantes (como Murad Awawdeh, de New York Immigration Coalition; Natalia Aristizabal, de Make the Road, y Amaha Kassa, de African Communities Together); proveedores de servicios jurídicos (como Melissa Chua, de NYLAG, y Rosa Cohen-Cruz, de Bronx Defenders); organizaciones de base (como Fahd Ahmed, de DRUM, y Adama Bah, de Afrikana); líderes religiosos (como Imam Shamsi Ali, del Centro Musulmán de Jamaica, y la rabina Rachel Timoner, de la Congregación Beth Elohim), así como Bitta Mostofi, excomisionada de la Oficina del Alcalde para Asuntos Migratorios (MOIA por sus siglas en inglés).

Un portavoz de Mamdani no quiso hacer comentarios sobre quién está siendo considerado para dirigir MOIA bajo la nueva administración.

Aristizabal, subdirectora de Make the Road NY, dijo que planea impulsar dos prioridades en nombre de la organización: el cumplimiento de las leyes santuario por parte del gobierno de la ciudad y una línea de atención directa de la ciudad para que los residentes reporten las actividades de ICE.

“Queremos asegurarnos de que las políticas santuario sean claras para las agencias”, dijo Aristizabal. 

El Departamento de Investigaciones (Department of Investigations) de la ciudad descubrió recientemente que un investigador del Departamento de Correccionales compartió en dos ocasiones información —violando las leyes santuario— sobre dos personas detenidas en la cárcel municipal con agentes del Departamento de Seguridad Nacional.

New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI por sus siglas en inglés) creó un  “memorándum de transición” para Mamdani, en el que se pide al nuevo alcalde que se asegure que todas las agencias cumplan con las normas existentes. El grupo apoya la aprobación del proyecto de ley Intro. 214, que permitiría a los residentes demandar a los funcionarios locales que violen las leyes de santuario al colaborar con ICE para detener a personas.

La segunda idea sobre la que Aristizábal quiere llamar la atención del comité es la creación de una línea de atención directa para que los neoyorquinos reporten las actividades de ICE. Esto podría ser similar a las redes de respuesta rápida establecidas en varios condados de California, dijo, y a la red “Eyes on ICE” (Ojos sobre el ICE) de Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights de Illinois, un sistema de alertas por mensaje de texto para los miembros de la comunidad sobre presencia y actividades de ICE en la zona. 

“Una vez que se informa a la línea directa, se conectan con una unidad de respuesta rápida que puede verificar lo que está sucediendo sobre el terreno. Se trata de una estructura y un recurso para poder rastrear cómo actúa ICE en esos estados”, explicó Ariztizabal. “Creo que es el momento de que Nueva York lo ponga en marcha”.

La administración Trump ha criticado las herramientas de alerta y notificación pública de presencia de ICE por considerarlas una amenaza para la seguridad de los agentes federales y, recientemente, ha conseguido que el gigante tecnológico Apple elimine las aplicaciones que recopilan este tipo de información.

Para ponerse en contacto con el reportero de esta noticia, escriba a Daniel@citylimits.org. Para ponerse en contacto con la editora, escriba a Jeanmarie@citylimits.org.

The post Equipo de transición de inmigración de Mamdani se centrará en reforzar leyes santuario de la ciudad appeared first on City Limits.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa’s communications minister ordered a policy change Friday that allows Elon Musk’s Starlink and other foreign-owned satellite internet providers to operate in the country without selling 30% of their local equity to Black or other non-white owners.

The policy change published in a government gazette allows foreign companies seeking licenses to operate in South Africa’s communications sector to instead invest in “equity equivalent” programs to meet affirmative action criteria, like skills training or other means of supporting previously disadvantaged groups.

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That option is also available for foreign-owned companies in other sectors in South Africa.

Musk, who was born in South Africa, accused his home country of having “openly racist ownership laws” by requiring at least 30% local ownership by Black or other races that were denied opportunities under South Africa’s apartheid system of white minority rule.

The world’s richest man posted on social media in March that Starlink wasn’t allowed to operate in South Africa “because I’m not black.” U.S. President Donald Trump has also targeted South Africa for criticism over its affirmative action regulations and other policies that he has cast as antiwhite.

South Africa’s affirmative action policies, known as Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment, are a cornerstone of its efforts to redress the inequalities of apartheid, though critics have said they are a barrier to foreign investment.

Starlink, which is a subsidiary of Musk’s SpaceX, says it already offers its low-orbit satellite internet in more than a dozen African countries, including most of South Africa’s neighbors.

South African Communications Minister Solly Malatsi said in his new policy directive that Starlink could help his nation accelerate high-speed internet access for rural and underserved communities.

“By building long‑lived gas infrastructure now, we make New York’s emission‑reduction goals harder and more expensive to reach and risk forcing abrupt, disruptive adjustments later.”

Climate activists rally against the NESE pipeline in August. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

New York faces a critical crossroads: regulators have approved the Williams Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) pipeline, doubling down on fossil fuel infrastructure when accelerating the clean transition is most urgent. Approval does not end the debate—it intensifies it, as communities and environmental groups now turn to the courts to halt the project. 

Proponents present NESE as a reliability lifeline for rising energy demand. Yet the problem is not supply shortage, but a policy choice about what kind of supply we build amid aging infrastructure. Investing in long‑lived gas systems signals to markets that climate goals can wait and wastes capital when a strong economic case already exists for accelerating renewables, storage, and efficiency to cut peak loads and bolster resilience. 

There are three clear reasons New York should confront the consequences of approving NESE and other expansion projects: 

First, the science is clear: new gas pipelines lock in decades of methane and carbon dioxide emissions. Methane routinely escapes during production and transport, eroding any short‑term climate advantage that gas might have over coal. By building long‑lived gas infrastructure now, we make New York’s emission‑reduction goals harder and more expensive to reach and risk forcing abrupt, disruptive adjustments later. 

Additionally, the local environmental and public health impacts matter. Pipeline construction and the associated compressor stations threaten water quality, wetlands, and coastal ecosystems—concerns that Northeast states have repeatedly cited when exercising their water-quality review powers. For communities near the Rockaway Transfer Point and routes through New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the risk of spills, habitat damage, and degraded air quality are not abstract; they are lived realities that hit low-income and fenceline neighborhoods hardest. 

Finally, renewables paired with battery storage are often cheaper than new fossil infrastructure especially when full system costs are counted. With investors moving away from long‑duration fossil assets, new pipelines risk becoming abandoned assets as policy and demand shift toward clean alternatives.

Ultimately, we pay the price. Utility customers would be stuck paying off this pipeline for years, even at a moment when New Yorkers are already struggling to afford their energy bills.

Approval has already triggered legal challenges. A coalition including NRDC, Earthjustice, and Surfrider Foundation has filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. They argue New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation violated the Clean Water Act by granting permits for NESE. The lawsuit underscores risks the pipeline poses to water quality and coastal ecosystems, and shows opposition will continue in the courts as well as communities across the region. 

The practical alternative to NESE is not an abrupt switch—it is a phased approach that safeguards reliability while cutting emissions. New York can chart this course by deploying offshore and onshore wind, scaling rooftop and community solar, expanding battery storage, and investing in demand‑side measures like weatherization and smart grids. Communities must be protected by retiring fossil infrastructure and ensuring short‑term reliability gaps are met with clean, dispatchable resources and regional coordination. 

State approval of NESE does not absolve lawmakers of responsibility. Legislators cannot claim climate leadership while allowing long‑lived fossil infrastructure to advance. Every dollar spent on pipelines is a dollar taken from renewables, storage, and efficiency. Every year of delay makes the eventual transition more abrupt and costly. 

With lawsuits now challenging the approval, legislators face a critical choice: defend communities and accelerate clean energy, or side with industry and entrench fossil fuel dependence. Legislators must now decide whether they will be remembered for protecting New York’s future or for locking the state into decades of carbon emissions.

Sophia Dimont is a program coordinator for Students for Climate Action, a non-profit dedicated to engaging high schoolers in climate advocacy, civic leadership, and policy initiatives.

The post Opinion:  New York’s Energy Future is on Trial appeared first on City Limits.