The stepdaughter of Sen. Bernie Sanders says she's running for mayor of Burlington. Carina Driscoll made the announcement Monday and says she'll run as an independent.
Driscoll has experience in public office; she previously served in both the Vermont Legislature and on Burlington's City Council. According to a press release, Driscoll left the City Council in 2004 to start her family and her business, Vermont Woodworking School.
In a statement, Driscoll said she was "proud to launch [her] campaign" and "[t]his election is about bringing people together."
Driscoll then highlighted the recent development projects in the city and said her campaign would be about keeping the public involved in development decisions.
"Whether we are talking about Memorial Auditorium, the Moran Plant, our public waterfront, or other city-owned property throughout Burlington, the people have the right to determine what we do with them," said Driscoll in that statement. "The message of this campaign is clear. Burlington is not for sale."
Driscoll is the third person to announce a bid for the mayor’s office. Mayor Miro Weinberger, a Democrat, is seeking re-election and Seven Days reported last week that Infinite Culcleasure is running for mayor as an independent.
At this time, there is not a Republican bid for the mayor's office, but Paco DeFrancis, the chair of the Burlington GOP, said the organization is "focused on recruiting and supporting Republican and right-leaning independent City Council candidate (sic)" and that their party's caucus is tentatively scheduled for early January.
The mayoral election will be held in March 2018. The mayor of Burlington serves a three-year term.
