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Jacqueline Bradley Chacon, an attorney from University Park, will run unopposed for the Town Council's vacant Ward 7 seat, according to town officials. She was the only resident to register before Friday's deadline and will be the lone candidate to appear on ballots for the Dec. 29 special election.

"Nobody else is doing it and somebody needs to represent us, so why not?" she said. "This is a small community that's very tight-knit and very conscious. ... There's a lot of possibility for doing and creating good things together."

The election will be held to replace former Councilman Ed DeSaussure, who was elected in 2008 and resigned Nov. 2 after clashing with other council members and Mayor John Tabori over the town's spending. If elected, Bradley Chacon will serve the remainder of DeSaussure's term and will be up for re-election in May.

Bradley Chacon, 47, is an immigration attorney who has lived in University Park with her husband, Cesar Korzeniewicz, and two children since 2004. She said her interest in town environmental issues including the restoration of its polluted Wells Run stream led her to collect 10 signatures required to run for council.

Finding candidates for Town Council has not always been easy. The Ward 7 council seat was also uncontested in 2008, when DeSaussure ran and won as an unopposed write-in candidate. Last May, two of four council seats were unopposed.

"It's marvelous that somebody steps forward," said Tabori, noting that the council has recently done difficult work, including revising its pension plan and providing input on the Route 1 Sector Plan and Belcrest Plaza in Hyattsville. "The last year has been fairly demanding on all of us."

Bradley Chacon works independently but was the former supervisor of the based United Methodist Committee on Relief's Justice for Our Neighbors program, which provides free legal services for immigrants. Her successor, Panravee Vongjoerenrat of Silver Spring, said Bradley Chacon should be a welcome addition to the Town Council.

"She's an extremely smart person," Vongjoerenrat said. "She's quite forceful in a very courteous way ... I think she would be a great councilwoman."

Even though she's running uncontested, Bradley Chacon said she plans to talk with residents about their concerns and encourage them to vote on Election Day. As a council member, she said she hopes to represent their interests ahead of her own.

"I'm keeping a very open mind," she said. "There's no particular agenda. I'm just trying to listen to people."

Only registered Ward 7 residents are allowed to vote or be candidates in the special election. Write-in candidates can run, but must collect 10 signatures from Ward 7 residents and register with the town by Dec. 24.

The election will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 29 at Riverdale Presbyterian Church, located at 6513 Queens Chapel Road in University Park.

E-mail David Hill at dhill@gazette.net.