page_title: Bernie Sanders
section_title: Mayor of Burlington, 1981–89
hierarchical_section_title: Bernie Sanders / Early career / Mayor of Burlington, 1981–89
caption_attribution_description: Burlington City Hall located at the corner of Church and Main Streets, east of City Hall Park, in Burlington Vermont, was built in 1928 in the Neoclassical style with Georgian aspects, and was designed by W. M. Kendall of McKim, Mead &amp; White. It is part of the City Hall Park Historic Distoric. (Source:[1])
context_page_description: Bernard "Bernie" Sanders is an American politician. He is the Junior United States senator from Vermont. He is an Independent, but often votes with the Democratic Party in the Senate. He became senator on January 3, 2007. He ran for President of the United States twice in 2016 and in 2020.
  Sanders was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 1964. While a student, he was active in organizing protests for civil rights. In 1963, he took part in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his "I Have a Dream" speech.
  Sanders was elected mayor of Burlington, Vermont in 1981. He was re-elected three times. In 1991, he became a United States representative for Vermont's at-large congressional district. He was a congressman for 16 years. In 2006, he was elected to the U.S. Senate after he won 64.5% of the vote. In 2012, he was re-elected by winning almost 71% of the vote. In 2018, he was re-elected by winning nearly 68% of the vote.
  Sanders calls himself a democratic socialist. He thinks that a social democratic government for the United States is a good idea.
context_section_description: After Sanders's failed run for governor, close friend Richard Sugarman wanted him to be a candidate for mayor of Burlington. Sanders won the election in February 1981. He beat the six-term mayor Gordon Paquette by ten votes. He took office on April 6, 1981.
  As mayor, Sanders wanted to fix Burlington's Lake Champlain. In 1981, Sanders was against Tony Pomerleau. Sanders did not want Pomerleau to change the industrial lake property owned by the Central Vermont Railway. He did not want the waterfront to become expensive condominiums, hotels, and offices.
  Sanders used the slogan "Burlington is not for sale". He supported a plan that changed the waterfront area into a district with housing, parks, and public space. As of 2016, the lake area has a public beach and bike paths, along with a boathouse, many parks, and a science center.
  In 1987, U.S. News named Sanders as one of America's best mayors. He was a big critic of President Ronald Reagan and his policies on income inequality.
  When he was mayor, Sanders helped to fix the city's budget. Sanders left office on April 4, 1989. For a short time, Sanders taught political science at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government in 1989 and at Hamilton College in 1991.
caption: Burlington City Hall was where Sanders worked during his time as mayor
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