The makeup of Burlington’s political scene could shift this March as eight of the city council’s 12 seats — all the ones that represent “wards” and not “districts” — are on the ballot.
But with less than a month until Jan. 24, the date by which candidates have to file paperwork with the city clerk, a clear picture of who is contending for those seats has yet to emerge.
The fogginess is partly due to the fact that four incumbent councilors — including Council President Max Tracy, P-Ward 2 — have not announced whether they’ll run again.
On top of those question marks, the Ward 5 council seat is entirely up for grabs, after Democratic Councilor Chip Mason announced earlier this month he wouldn’t seek reelection.
At their Dec. 19 caucus, Democrats nominated Ben Traverse, a lawyer who chairs the city’s parks and recreation commission, to fill Mason’s slot. Progressives are scheduled to select their own competitor at a Jan. 18 caucus.
Democrats also have given their blessing to Hannah King, a University of Vermont student running to represent Ward 8. The seat’s incumbent, Progressive Councilor Jane Stromberg, hasn’t announced her plans for reelection.
King’s affiliation with the Democratic Party has not quelled her support for some policies that are more popular among Progressive councilors than Democratic ones. King supports “rent stabilization,” for instance, which she says includes measures such as regulating the conditions under which landlords can raise rent and increasing the city’s housing supply.
In an interview with VTDigger, King said she understands the reality of partisanship on the council, but hopes to focus more on what ideas make the most sense, as opposed to what each political party traditionally has supported.
“I want to be able to push the Democrats on council to … consider more progressive policies,” King said.
In addition to Traverse and King, Democrats nominated four other candidates — including incumbents Sarah Carpenter of Ward 4 and Karen Paul of Ward 6 — but did not pick anyone for Wards 1, 2 or 3.
Represented by Tracy and Councilor Joe Magee, wards 2 and 3, respectively, are unlikely to fall out of Progressives’ hands, even if Tracy — who has served on the council since 2012 — opts not to run. Magee, who took the Ward 3 seat in an August special election to replace the city’s now-economic development chief Brian Pine, has already announced their reelection bid.
Ward 1, meanwhile, is not as sure of a Progressive seat. The precinct has flip-flopped between Democrats and Progressives in the past, and incumbent Progressive Councilor Zoraya Hightower says she hasn’t decided whether she’ll run again.
In the event that she doesn’t run, Hightower told VTDigger she feels “confident that there will be a competitive race in Ward 1.”
Hightower is weighing a number of factors as she contemplates the possibility of a second term, she said. While she would like to continue her work on policing and housing issues, she said the acrimonious political environment that can accompany a spot on the council does not bode well for one’s mental health.
“It’s been a really contentious year for public officials,” Hightower said.
The “aggressive” political scene has made it hard to recruit candidates to run for office, said Josh Wronski, executive director of the Vermont Progressive Party, though his party still hopes to field candidates for every ward race.
At stake for the Progressives, Wronski and Hightower said, is the party’s ability to check the political power of Mayor Miro Weinberger, a Democrat. While Progressives currently have more councilors than any other party, they comprise six of the council’s twelve votes, meaning they can unilaterally block a resolution but not pass one.
“The best we can do is really hold off the worst of the Weinberger administration,” Wronski told VTDigger.
When they do pass resolutions, the Progressives usually rely on the swing vote of Councilor Ali Dieng, I-Ward 7, who told VTDigger he hasn’t decided whether he’ll run for reelection.
“Family, work, there’s a lot in the air for me,” said Dieng, who challenged Weinberger and Tracy in the city’s most recent mayoral race. “I am definitely ready to pass the gavel on to someone else.”
If Dieng does run, he would face Democrat Aleczander Stith, an engineer the party nominated at its Dec. 19 caucus.
Along with the Ward 7 seat, Dieng told VTDigger he’s strongly considering a run for the state Legislature.
Dieng has yet to find a successor who he believes is fit to replace him in Ward 7, he said. Part of the criteria would be someone who, like Dieng, runs as an independent.
And before he gives up his New North End seat, Dieng said he wants to see the recommendations of a city-commissioned report on policing get implemented.
For all the candidates, the ongoing pandemic could make in-person campaigning more difficult between now and March.
The potential hazards of in-person campaigning are particularly hard on Progressives, who rely on door-knocking more than donations to win over voters, Wronski said.
“We’ve kind of had to make the rules up as we go along,” the party director said. “We’re going to be looking at the science and the data to see what our campaigns are going to look like.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated how Councilor Ali Dieng voted on a 2020 resolution that reduced the number of police officers the city could hire. He opposed the measure.
