My sense is that you took her communication about being new to to the democratic process in 2013, out of context.  I know her well, and to me it sounds as though she was advocating for community members who were new to the process. And yes, that was her first time being paid by a non-profit for activism, which was well known to the community, and to the council. Also, I'm sure that it was a new experience for her in that arena of the democratic process. Your general bias against her seems overly critical and unfair. It has been 4 years since the event that you are referring to, and this is her first term in office.