William J. Coughlin won a special election Tuesday for the Burnsville City Council.
He will fill the seat left by Charlie Crichton, 83, who died in March. The term expires at the end of 2014.
Nine candidates had filed for the race to replace Crichton, one of the longest-serving council members in Burnsville's history. In addition to Coughlin, the candidates were Donna Alberts, Shane Wyatt McCartney, John Gullickson, Tom Hanson, Aaron Hoy, Steve Atkins, Greg Tomlinson and Bruce Johnson. The City Council voted in the spring not to hold a primary.
Coughlin received 1,708 votes, or almost 58 percent of the 2,946 cast. He is expected to take office within days.
Burnsville City Clerk Macheal Brooks said the city has 35,483 registered voters. She had said a canvassing of other cities with special elections indicated a turnout of about 20 percent, or more than 7,000 voters. In the 2010 election, almost 21,000 votes were cast.
HERÓN MÁRQUEZ ESTRADA
