FERGUSON,
Mo. — Two black candidates were among three people elected to the
Ferguson City Council Tuesday, tripling African-American representation
in the St. Louis suburb where poor race relations have been a focal
point since the August shooting death of an 18-year-old black by a white
police officer.
The
election means that half of the six-member city council in Ferguson, a
town where two-thirds of the 21,000 residents are black, will now be
African-American. The lone black incumbent councilman was not up for
re-election. The mayor, who could break any tie votes, is white.
Voter
turnout increased substantially from the previous election following a
strong get-out-the-vote effort from labor unions and other national
organizations. The town that drew only 12.3 percent of registered voters
last April had 29.4 percent turnout Tuesday, according to the St. Louis
County Board of Elections. That was about double the overall turnout in
St. Louis County, where Ferguson is located.
Unofficial
results showed that Wesley Bell defeated another black candidate to win
in the 3rd Ward. Ella Jones defeated another black candidate and two
white candidates in the 1st Ward. Brian Fletcher, a former mayor who is
white, won a 2nd Ward race against another white candidate.
"This
community came out in record numbers to make sure our voices were
heard," said councilman-elect Bell. "When you have a community engaged,
the sky is the limit."
He described it as part of a healing and rebuilding process.
It
was the first municipal election in Ferguson since officer Darren
Wilson fatally shot Michael Brown, who was black and unarmed, on Aug. 9.
The shooting sparked sometimes violent protests in the St. Louis area,
and spawned a national "Black Lives Matter" movement to press for change
in how police deal with local minorities.
It
also prompted a review by the U.S. Justice Department, which decided
not to prosecute Wilson, who resigned in November. But the federal
department released a scathing report blasting the city for racial bias
and profiling in the police department and a profit-driven municipal
court system. Several city officials resigned following the review,
including the city manager, police chief and municipal judge. The
municipal court clerk was fired for racist emails.
The new city council will be tasked with approving hiring of the replacements.
The
scrutiny in the wake of the shooting also found that the city had a
mostly white police force and city leadership — the mayor also is white.
In
the race for the 3rd Ward, which includes the apartment complex where
Brown was killed, Bell, 40, easily defeated 76-year-old retiree Lee
Smith. Bell is a lawyer and a criminology professor who had to defend
himself because of a third job — municipal judge in a neighboring town
of Velda City that, like Ferguson, derives a large percentage of its
budget from municipal court fines. Smith had support of several national
organizations whose volunteers went door-to-door on his behalf.
Jones
had support of a labor union and won easily in her four-person race.
Fletcher, the former mayor who started the "I Love Ferguson" campaign
after the unrest that ravaged the community, also won easily in the 2nd
Ward.
A
strong push was made after the shooting to register more black voters
last year, but just 562 new voters were added to the rolls. In recent
weeks, the focus has been on getting those who are registered to vote.
The
high turnout came despite brutal weather. Strong storms, including
lightning and heavy rain, tore through the region for several hours
before noon. But the weather didn't deter Marty Einig, who has
participated in Ferguson protests since August. She was voting in the
3rd Ward, which includes the Canfield Green apartment complex where
Brown was fatally shot.
"I
see there is raw material within this community to demonstrate hope,"
Einig said. "I see a glass that's half full, and I feel that the people
have the will to force change."
Charrolynn
Washington agreed. Voting at the First Presbyterian Church of Ferguson,
she said the election is where real change will occur.
"As
much change is needed here in Ferguson, this is where we begin - not
out there in the streets, doing what they were doing - but, right here,"
Washington said. "They need to be voting and putting people in position
to make the change and make the decisions that need to be made."
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