SCHENECTADY â The contentious battle for the City Council's vacant seat is over, for now, as one of the Democratic candidates has dropped out.
John Mootooveren, who lost his November bid for the council, is withdrawing from a June primary with Marion Porterfield.
Mootooveren wanted a second shot at serving on the governmental body by being appointed to fill the seat that was held by Mayor Gary McCarthy. But the party's committee had promised the job to Porterfield, a Weed and Seed coordinator.
The unofficial contest between the two for the appointment became a struggle between the city's black and Guyanese communities, as supporters of both candidates spoke at the rail at biweekly City Council meetings. Eventually, City Council President Denise Brucker put up Mootooveren's name for a vote in February but he did not get more than three votes to be appointed. Whoever was appointed, however, was still going to have to run this year fill the final year remaining for McCarthy's former seat.
After the deadlocked City Council vote, Mootooveren still vowed to run in a primary against Porterfield.
Mootooveren, an accountant, would not comment on his decision, other than to point to a post on his campaign Facebook page that said: "I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported me during my campaign. Let us continue to work together to make Schenectady the beautiful city that we envision it to be."
"Ultimately, it's a big commitment," said City Councilwoman Leesa Perazzo, who wanted Mootooveren appointed to the post. "I think he weighed out a lot of factors, and he decided right now that's the best decision for him."
It's unknown if any other Democrats will try to challenge Porterfield. Roger Hull, who was narrowly defeated by McCarthy in the mayoral race, said his Alliance Party will field a candidate in the November election.
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