James Scheibel is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 politician who was endorsed by the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party

The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party is a major political party in the state of Minnesota and the state affiliate of the Democratic Party. It was created on April 15, 1944, with the merger of the Minnesota Democratic Party and the Farmer–Labor Party...

. From 1990 to 1994, he served as the mayor of Saint Paul

Saint Paul, Minnesota

Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

, Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

, succeeding George Latimer.

A graduate of Saint John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota

College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University

The College of Saint Benedict , for women, and Saint John's University , for men, are partnered liberal arts colleges respectively located in St. Joseph and Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Students attend classes and activities together, and have access to the resources of both campuses...

, he worked as a community organizer

Community organizing

Community organizing is a process where people who live in proximity to each other come together into an organization that acts in their shared self-interest. A core goal of community organizing is to generate durable power for an organization representing the community, allowing it to influence...

, as aide to former mayor Lawrence D. Cohen

Lawrence D. Cohen

Lawrence D. Cohen is an American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on Brian De Palma's Carrie , an adaptation of Stephen King's novel. Following this he scripted a simplified film adaptation of Peter Straub's novel Ghost Story in 1981...

, as national organizer for the Fred R. Harris

Fred R. Harris

Fred Roy Harris is a former Democratic United States Senator from the state of Oklahoma. He served from 1964 until 1973.-Biography:...

 Presidential campaign in 1976 and as deputy director for Volunteers in Service to America

Volunteers in Service to America

VISTA or Volunteers in Service to America is an anti-poverty program created by Lyndon Johnson's Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 as the domestic version of the Peace Corps. Initially, the program increased employment opportunities for conscientious people who felt they could contribute tangibly to...

 (VISTA). Elected to the Saint Paul City Council in 1982, he served there until his election as Mayor.

As mayor, Scheibel led efforts to tackle the problems of homelessness, hunger and refugee services.

Scheibel was succeeded by Norm Coleman

Norm Coleman

Norman Bertram Coleman, Jr. is an American attorney and politician. He was a United States senator from Minnesota from 2003 to 2009. Coleman was elected in 2002 and served in the 108th, 109th, and 110th Congresses. Before becoming a senator, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota, from 1994 to 2002...

. After his term as mayor, Scheibel served as vice president for the Corporation for National and Community Service

Corporation For National and Community Service

The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America, and other national service initiatives...

 and as a nonprofit executive. He currently chairs the 21st Century Democrats

21st Century Democrats

21st Century Democrats is a political organization founded by Senator Tom Harkin, commentator Jim Hightower and Congressman Lane Evans to help elect "progressive" or "populist" candidates.- Background :...

, a progressive electoral coalition active within the national Democratic Party

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 and is a member of the Saint Paul Area Council of Churches. He teaches at Hamline University

Hamline University

-Red Wing location :Hamline was named in honor of Leonidas Lent Hamline, a bishop of the Methodist Church whose interest in the frontier led him to donate $25,000 toward the building of an institution of higher learning in what was then the territory of Minnesota. Today, a statue of Bishop Hamline...

 and is the interim executive director of the Minnesota Campus Compact.