1997 Burlington mayoral election

1997 Burlington mayoral election

←  1995 March 4, 1997 1999  →

Nominee Peter Clavelle Louis Beaudin Michael Brown Party Progressive Coalition Independent Independent Popular vote 4,487 413 398 Percentage 76.13% 7.01% 6.75%

Mayor of Burlington before election Peter Clavelle Progressive Coalition Elected Mayor of Burlington Peter Clavelle Progressive Coalition

On March 4, 1997, a mayoral election was held in Burlington, Vermont. Incumbent Progressive Coalition Mayor Peter Clavelle won reelection against three independent candidates.

Background

Peter Brownell's victory in the 1993 election against Progressive Coalition Mayor Peter Clavelle was the first time a Republican had won Burlington's mayoralty since Edward A. Keenan left office in 1965, and ended the Progressive's control over the mayoralty which started with Bernie Sanders' victory in the 1981 election. ^[1]

However, Clavelle returned to office and defeated Brownell in the 1995 election. ^[2] By the time of the 1997 election, the city council was composed of 6 Progressives, 5 Republicans, 2 Democrats, and an independent. ^[3]

Nominations

Clavelle announced on December 2, 1996, that he would seek reelection ^[4] and received the Progressive nomination without opposition on December 9. ^[5]

The Democratic and Republican parties did not run candidates against Clavelle. ^[6] John Patch, a Democratic candidate for city council, said the Democrats did not field a candidate as Clavelle "has been a pretty good Democrat". ^[7] Kurt Wright declined to seek the Republican nomination. ^[8]

Campaign

Clavelle, lacking any major party opponents, used campaign money to hold a party attended by Progressive city councilors. ^[9] Steve Hingtgen was Clavelle's campaign manager and expected to spend 1/4th of what Clavelle spent in 1995. He and Peter Baker were the only paid members of Clavelle's staff. The campaign focused on aiding Progressive city council candidates win. ^[6]

Independent candidates Beaudin, Brown, and Capps were Clavelle's only opponents. Beaudin and Brown ran in the 1995 election as well. ^[10] Brown spent $600 on a fundraising event in the Contois Auditorium in January 1997, but it was attended by nobody except one TV news reporter. Maja Capps did not raise any money as he was against the idea. Beaudin was vacationing in Florida until ten days before the election. ^[6]

A mayoral forum sponsored by the Burlington Waterfront Board was held on February 19. ^[6]

Clavelle won the election with over 70% of the popular vote. ^[11] In the concurrent city council elections the Progressives maintained their seats while the Republicans lost one to the Democrats. ^[12]

Results

1997 Burlington mayoral election ^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Coalition	Peter Clavelle (incumbent)	4,487	76.13%
	Independent	Louis Beaudin	413	7.01%
	Independent	Michael Brown	398	6.75%
	Independent	Maja Capps	216	3.66%
	Independent	Write-ins	380	6.45%
Total votes			5,894	100.00%

References

1. Teetor 1993.
2. Election 1995.
3. Council 1997.
4. Clavelle Announce 1996.
5. Clavelle Select 1996.
6. Manager 1997.
7. Walsh 1997.
8. Decline 1997.
9. No Opponents 1997.
10. Ran Before 1997.
11. Election 1997.
12. Council Election 1997.

Works cited

Newspapers

• Corrigan, Hilary (December 10, 1996). "Progressives nominate Clavelle for mayor". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Geggis, Anne (February 8, 1997). "Burlington mayor spends campaign money on party". The Burlington Free Press . p. 3B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (March 6, 1997). "Clavelle thanks voters, sets goals". The Burlington Free Press . p. 3B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (December 3, 1996). "Clavelle to seek re-election". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (March 5, 1997). "Democrats gain seat on council". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (January 28, 1997). "Major parties avoid Clavelle challenge". The Burlington Free Press . p. 6B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (February 16, 1997). "Victory is brewing at Clavelle klatches". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Iyengar, Sona (January 3, 1997). "Wright won't run for mayor". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Teetor, Paul (March 3, 1993). "Brownell Wins". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
• Walsh, Molly (February 25, 1997). "Democrats define agenda, hope to gain council seats". The Burlington Free Press . p. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
• Walsh, Molly (February 25, 1997). "DEMOCRATS: Party hopes to expand city influence". The Burlington Free Press . p. 5B – via Newspapers.com.

Report

• Statement of Votes Annual City Meeting (Report). Burlington, Vermont. March 7, 1995. p. 258.