Peter Clavelle Politician

Peter A. Clavelle (born May 10, 1949) is a Vermont politician and former mayor of Burlington. He was first elected mayor in 1989, serving seven terms. Prior to his election, he was a community development consultant and public official, serving, among other positions, as Director of Community and Economic Development in the administration of then-Mayor Bernie Sanders. Clavelle was elected mayor in 1989 as a Progressive. He remained in office until 1993 when he lost his re-election bid after giving domestic partners of city employees full benefits [1]. Clavelle returned to the mayors office two years later in 1995 continuing to hold the position until 2006. In 2004, he ran for Governor as a Democrat against incumbent Governor Jim Douglas and four other candidates. In order to run in the Democratic Party primary Clavelle had to change party affiliation as required by state law [2]. Despite some initial buzz and the endorsement of five-term former Democratic Governor Howard Dean, he was defeated, 38% to 59%. Clavelle did not seek re-election to an eighth term as mayor in 2006. See Vermont gubernatorial election, 2004.In 2012 Clavelle moved to Albania as a staff member on a USAID-funded local governance project.