Kenyan-Born Boni Njenga Running for a Hennepin County (Minnesota) Board of Commissioners' Seat

Kenyan-born policy analyst Boni Njenga is running for the position of a commissioner in one of the county boards in the US.

He is eyeing a seat in the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners, District 5, in Minneapolis, Minnesota and will be challenging first-term incumbent Debbie Goettel in the main elections to be held on November 3rd.

Njenga has promised to deliver on five key areas once elected including creating community wealth, closing the achievement gap, children protective services, safe and affordable housing, and improving the quality of life for all residents.

“We are facing challenges like the opioid crisis, homelessness, public safety, racial disparities, and tax levy increase with no accountability and transparency on spending,” Njenga says.

“We can only solve these issues with fresh and bold 21st-century governance, by applying evidence-based policy making which will enable us to curb wasteful spending in Hennepin County, keeping more money in your pocket.”

Hennepin is Minnesota’s largest county and has an annual budget of $2.5 billion that is overseen by a seven-member board of commissioners that represent the county’s seven districts. District 5 covers the cities of Bloomington, Eden Prairie, and Richfield.

“I’m running to be a Hennepin County Commissioner District 5 to advocate for all of us. The challenges we are facing today requires more than a single approach, it requires fresh new ideas, action, and strong advocacy,” he adds.

“It will be quite an honor if residents of District 5 give me a chance to serve them and give back to the community that gave me a home and accepted me years ago,” says Njenga, who moved to the US 17 years ago to further his studies.

Njenga holds a bachelor’s in political science and a master’s in public administration from Minnesota State University-Mankato. He previously worked with the state of Minnesota government before joining the private sector as a business owner.