Ferguson Elects 2 Black Council Members

Ferguson voters elected two African Americans to its City Council on Tuesday in the first municipal election since the killing of an unarmed black teenager at the hands of a white police officer last year. The winners include 1st Ward candidate Ella Jones, who will become the first black woman on the council, and 3rd Ward’s Wesley Bell. The third victor was 2nd Ward candidate Brian Fletcher, a former mayor of the city who is white. Ferguson also saw its voter turnout more than double throughout the day despite heavy rain, with about 29 percent of registered voters showing up. Municipal-election turnout has typically averaged around 12 percent in recent years.