Aurora City Council appoints Ethiopian immigrant to fill vacant at-large seat

The Aurora Metropolis Council will quickly return to full power after it appointed Amsalu Kassaw as the latest member of the 11-person council Monday night time.

Kassaw, who works at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Aurora detention heart as a lieutenant with the GEO Group, its non-public operator, is an immigrant from Ethiopia. He can be sworn in Jan. 13.

The Republican was considered one of three candidates vying for the at-large seat vacated by former Councilman Dustin Zvonek in October. The opposite two candidates for the submit have been Danielle Lammon, a small enterprise proprietor and insurance coverage agent, and Jonathan McMillan, the director of firearm-related hurt and violence prevention on the Trailhead Institute.

The vote for Kassaw was 6-4.

The Ethio-American Growth Council posted a congratulations on X concerning the appointment early Tuesday morning.

“An enormous congratulations to Amsalu Kassaw on being appointed to the Aurora Metropolis Council at-large, making historical past as the primary immigrant on our Metropolis Council and the primary Ethiopian American to carry an official public workplace within the State of Colorado,” it stated.

The Aurora Sentinel reported that prior council members in Aurora have been immigrants, however Kassaw would be the first from a racial minority.

Aurora is Colorado’s most various metropolis, with one in 5 of its residents overseas born. It has been wracked by division and tumult of late, with dozens of residents commonly protesting throughout Metropolis Council conferences over the dying of 37-year-old Kilyn Lewis, a Black man shot and killed by Aurora police in Might. Final month, the district legal professional decided that SWAT Officer Michael Dieck wouldn’t face legal fees within the incident, through which Dieck fatally shot the unarmed Lewis whereas making an attempt to arrest him on suspicion of tried homicide.