On a chilly fall evening, a group of state and local politicians who normally take the stage suddenly found themselves relegated to the audience - spectators in a gathering crowd of people with disabilities.

In a role reversal, the candidates mostly stood listening at a Richfield park as disability activists from across the Twin Cities pushed their campaign for change. Between speeches calling for inclusion, people with a range of physical and intellectual disabilities - including many in wheelchairs - pressed candidates about their positions on access to health care, accessible housing and the state's severe shortage of caregivers.

"If you are not including the disability community in your campaign, then you are missing out on a whole lot of voters," Judy Moe, of Richfield, who organized the event and has an adult daughter with a physical disability, told the crowd.

https://www.startribune.com/minnesotans-with-disabilities-flex-political-muscle-ahead-of-midterm-elections/600218958/