Takoma Park councilman defeated by write-in candidate

This is not original reporting. All information has been compiled from the Washington Post article "Alone on the ballot, and out of a job," by Lila Arzua.

Terry Seamens won the Ward 4 seat in the Takoma Park City Council as a write-in candidate, defeating unopposed incumbent Roland James Dawes in the election held on November 4.

Seamens, 57, a computer analyst and president of the Ritchie Citizens Association neighborhood group, defeated Dawes 47 votes to 30 votes on Tuesday. As a write-in candidate, Seamens' name was not actually on the ballot. Instead, enough voters simply wrote his name in. Seamens, who did not campaign for himself prior to the election, was surprised by the results. "There was no way I thought [the write-in organizers] would be successful," he said.

Seamens held the Ward 4 seat until 2001, when he made an unsuccessful bid for mayor, said the Washington Post . Seamens was nominated for Ward 4 councilman by supporters in September, but he withdrew from the race, believing that voters had misinterpreted and did not approve of his leaving the council two years ago. Friends and supporters of Seamens campaigned by knocking on doors and handing out fliers to citizens of Takoma Park.

Dawes, 75, is a nearly life-long Takoma Park resident and the owner of Roland's Barber Shop and Unisex Hair Salon, located in Takoma Park. He attributed his defeat to left-leaning Takoma residents who disagreed with his Republican affiliation, said the Washington Post.

Seamens will be sworn in on November 17. His priorities for Takoma Park include repairing roads, reducing speeding, building a city gym, and organizing a trolley to transport Takoma residents around town.