Updated at 5:43 p.m.
BURLINGTON — Joan Shannon, a longtime city councilor, is the Democratic candidate for Burlington mayor.
Shannon won the party’s nomination with 50.7% of the vote Sunday night, narrowly avoiding the need for a runoff. She received 1,689 votes, while opponents Karen Paul and CD Mattison received 1,173 and 471 votes, respectively.
Burlington Democrats held their nominating caucus largely virtually, with candidates, party officials and a small crowd gathering at Edmunds Middle School. A record total of 3,676 people registered to participate, according to Burlington Democratic Party chair Adam Roof, and 3,333 cast votes for mayor.
Shannon, a South End resident and a realtor, has served on the City Council for 20 years, including a three-year stint as its president.
She will face off against state Rep. Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, who won the Progressive nomination in an uncontested race last week, and potentially others on Town Meeting Day in March.
In her speech to caucus participants ahead of the vote Sunday, Shannon focused on public safety, an issue she has placed at the center of her campaign.
“We need courage and leadership to make hard decisions on the path to restore what we all know Burlington can and should be,” said Shannon, who received endorsements from the Burlington Police Officers’ Association and the Burlington Firefighters Association ahead of Sunday’s caucus.
The three Democratic candidates competed in a hotly contested race for a caucus nomination after Mayor Miro Weinberger chose not to run again this fall. Much of the public discourse surrounding the race has centered on public safety issues.
This story will be updated.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Joan Shannon wins Democratic nomination for Burlington mayor.