FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) – Ferguson, Missouri’s top elected official in the tumultuous 32 months since the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown has won another three-year term.
James Knowles III, the mayor who was the public face of Ferguson after Brown’s death in August 2014, held off a challenge Tuesday from city Councilwoman Ella Jones, who was seeking to become the St. Louis suburb’s first-ever black mayor. It will be Knowles’ final term in office, due to term limits.
Ferguson was thrust into the national consciousness after white police officer Darren Wilson fatally shot Brown on Aug. 9, 2014. The shooting of the unarmed, black 18-year-old led to months of sometimes violent protests and was a catalyst for the “Black Lives Matter” movement. Wilson was cleared of wrongdoing and resigned in November 2014.