Ferguson election Changes City Hall

(AP) – Two black candidates are among three people elected to the Ferguson City Council, substantially increasing African-American representation in the St. Louis suburb at the center of a national debate about how police interact with minority residents.

Unofficial results on Tuesday showed that Wesley Bell, a black man, won in the 3rd Ward and Ella Jones, a black woman, won in the 1st Ward. Brian Fletcher, a former mayor who is white, won a 2nd Ward race against another white candidate.

Until Tuesday, the mayor and five of six City Council members were white. Mayor James Knowles III and three council members, including Dwayne James, who is black, were not up for election this year.