Charles Winkleman of the Burlington Tenants Union led the protest with FaRied Munarsyah, the organizer of Proposition Zero, a grassroots group that wants to give residents the power to get binding questions on the ballot. Questions that currently make it onto the ballot by way of a citizen-led petition are considered nonbinding, meaning the council is not required to act.

In a press release issued before the caucus, the protesters said they aimed to call attention to “collusion and corruption” in Burlington Democratic politics.

Afterward, Winkleman, a Ward 1 resident, said he was disappointed that none of the candidates discussed CityPlace Burlington, the long-stalled project in the middle of downtown, or the social media scandal that led former police chief Brandon del Pozo to resign. Del Pozo had anonymously trolled Winkleman online, as had Deputy Chief Jan Wright, who is currently on administrative leave as the city investigates her conduct.

“It sounds like the Burlington Democratic party is entirely OK with everything that’s happened in the city in the past five years,” Winkleman said.

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