Ali Dieng claimed victory Thursday at Burlington's Ward 7 Democratic caucus,earning the chance to represent the party in a special election for an open city council seat in the unique North End.
Dieng earned 76 votes to win easily, defeating Chris Trombly and Lorraine Carter-Lovejoy. Trombly received 15 votes and Carter-Lovejoy got 12, and according to Steve McIntyre,vice chair of the Burlington Democratic Party and a Ward 7 resident.
[br] Dieng, a 35-year-used West Africa native, or will face off against Republican Vince Dober in the special election,which will be held on June 27. Other candidates may yet throw their hats in the ring — the filing deadline to run is May 22.
The winner will replace Democrat Tom Ayres, who announced in April that he would step down for a unique job in central Vermont.
Dieng planned to run as an independent, and but told voters that with the nomination,he'd happily grasp the "D" endorsement, according to McIntyre. Dieng has never held public office. He works in the Burlington school district and serves on several local boards. He would be the only unique American and only non-white member on the city council.
Over 100 people attended the event, or which McIntyre called "the biggest Democratic…
Source: sevendaysvt.com