Editor’s note: This story was updated at 5:30 p.m. Monday.
[F]ormer Republican state Senate candidate Alex Farrell is planning on running for the Burlington City Council as an independent after Democratic councilor Dave Hartnett unexpectedly ended his re-election bid in the city’s New North End.
Hartnett informed council president Kurt Wright and city Democrats about his decision on Friday. Farrell announced Monday he would run. Wright, a Republican, said that he was planning on supporting Farrell in the election.
Hartnett said he was dropping out because he has a series of family obligations, but wasn’t more specific. Seven Days first reported Hartnett’s decision.
Hartnett said the family issues are not health related, but he did not want to be more specific.
“I think it’s well documented that if I’m running for council I’m all in all the time, and I don’t know if I can be all in all the time for the next six to eight months,” he said.
Farrell ran a spirited campaign on a platform of fiscal responsibility but finished a distant seventh in the six-seat Chittenden County Senate election in November.
Farrell said he would not have challenged Hartnett, but Hartnett’s decision not to run was a “game changer” in the race.
“I can understand how the City Council takes a lot, and Dave is a guy who puts his whole heart and soul into what he’s doing,” Farrell said. “And that’s what we saw day in and day out on the City Council.”
Farrell said he would be running on a platform of keeping taxes low while investing in the city’s schools and bringing more public transportation to the New North End.
“I’m going to stick in my wheelhouse,” he said. “Some of the big things are protecting taxpayers and keeping taxes low, but in areas we need to invest, investing well.”
He said that his decision to run as an independent and not as a Republican was partially inspired by the fact the party is not calling a caucus. But he also said he does not believe that party labels should be included in municipal elections.
“You can’t compare what the parties are doing at a statewide level to a municipal level because there are such different issues,” he said.
Hartnett said he was hopeful he would be able to serve the community again in some capacity in the future.
“It’s going to be a very difficult time for me not being able to serve, but I hope it’s short-lived,” he said.
Hartnett said he would support a candidate who is willing to put people first and put politics aside, and hopes that candidate will be a Democrat. But he said that he is not planning on actively campaigning.
“I’ve brought a lot of common sense to the council and brought a lot of people into politics,” he said. “They see me as one of them, and I see myself as one of them. I don’t think any councilor worked harder than me to establish their relationships with the people they represent.”
The New North End is considered more conservative politically than the rest of the city, but Democrat Bob Hooper defeated incumbent Wright in November for a seat in the Vermont Legislature, and Progressive/Democrat Ali Dieng also represents the New North End on the council.
Hartnett had already accepted the Democratic nomination. He is known as a independent voice on the council who has emerged this fall as the council’s harshest critic on the downtown CityPlace development.
Wright said he was sad to see Hartnett leave the council but expected Hartnett to continue to be involved in politics in the city.
“I do think it is a loss for the New North End, he has been a passionate voice for so many issues, and I’m sure there are many people up here in the NNE who are disappointed to see Dave leave,” he said.
City councilor Joan Shannon, a Democrat, said she expected Hartnett to remain involved in the city’s political scene.
“I think he has always really had the pulse of the community, and that was a really important thing that he brought to the table,” she said.
Independent Kienan Christianson received the Progressive Party’s endorsement at its caucus last week, and is the only other candidate remaining in the race. Hartnett’s departure from the race could lead other interested candidates to step forward.
Christianson said the news won’t change his campaign calculations as he will continue to focus on the issues. He said as he has been knocking on doors, and affordability and North Avenue safety are two issues that keep coming up.
“What’s great about the New North End is it’s a changing neighborhood, and we have a chance to really come together and start addressing these big issues,” he said.
