2 days Ago By Brennen Kauffman [email protected]
Brandy Williams may be returning to the Colorado Springs City Council after more than a decade out of office, based on Tuesday night's early election results for the District 3 race. The first round of initial election results showed Williams, an engineer who was on the City Council from 2011 to 2013, leading with 38% of the roughly 15,250 votes counted in the district. "I loved being on before and I am excited to go back," Williams said after the first results were announced Tuesday night.
The District 3 election was the most crowded field on the ballot, as four other candidates were competing. Maryah Lauer, a former City Council intern and organizer for the Stop Cop City COS campaign, was running in a close second with 33% of the initial votes. Following those two in early results were Parks Advisory Board member Greg Thornton, with 15% of the vote; local business owner Rick Gillit, with 12%; and former judo competitor Christopher Metzgar, with 2%.
District 3 covers downtown, Old Colorado City and the other southwest areas of Colorado Springs. The district has been represented by Councilwoman Michelle Talarico for the past two years, who announced she would not be seeking reelection to focus on her family and the demands of her company, Picnic Basket Catering Collective. Williams had been an at-large councilmember during her previous term and recently ran to be an El Paso County Commissioner.
Williams said Tuesday night that she wanted to help improve police response times and bring her experiences working for Fountain back to the city. "The council has changed a lot, so I'm looking forward to understanding the role they have found themselves in and how we can move forward together," Williams said. Lauer said when reached Tuesday night that whatever the final result of the race ended up being, she was energized by the support and would use the momentum to work on organizing efforts in the city.
This article will be updated through Tuesday night as more results are announced by the Colorado Springs City Clerk's Office..
