Council member gives opponent ABC (already been chewed) gum

MINNEAPOLIS – A Minneapolis City Council member has given one of her opponents something to chew over — a piece of chewed gum.

Twenty-year incumbent Lisa Goodman took the gum out of her mouth and handed it to challenger Teqen Zea-Aida before the start of a candidate forum Tuesday.

Goodman asked Zea-Aida: “Would you take my gum, please?”

Goodman tells the Star Tribune she couldn’t find any paper to get rid of her gum and was just making a lighthearted comment. Zea-Aida wondered if Goodman was hinting he had bad breath and thought she was offering him gum.

Goodman says the challenger “looked at me like I was crazy,” and she took the gum back out of his hand. The council member says it was “a simple attempt at humour” and apologized.