Someone threatened to set Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward on fire if she went to a meeting.

It wasn’t the first instance of harassment she’d faced in office. She was advised not to walk to work, threatened with being hanged from Burlington city hall. Local police discovered one agitator lived down the street — a five-minute walk from her house. At one point, she ordered groceries online to avoid going out.

“It has lasting impacts,” said Meed Ward. “While I’m trying to pay attention to a development application and learning about it and listening to the community, I’m wondering if I’ve put myself at bodily harm by just being there.”

Incidents of harassment are not new in politics, but politicians are realizing that the growing number is alarming.

“There’s now a cost that wasn’t ther

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