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10/17/2017 12:00 AMOnce the polls close and the votes are counted on Tuesday, Nov. 7, Guilford municipal government could look quite different. In this year’s municipal elections, residents will vote in a new first selectman and possibly change the balance of power on major boards in town.
According to a sample ballot provided by the Town Clerk Anna Dwyer, Democratic candidates appear first on the ballot, followed by Republicans, and then write-in votes. All candidates listed below are identified by how their names appear on the ballot.
In the race for first selectman, current Board of Finance (BOF) Chair Democrat Matthew T. Hoey III is facing off against current BOF member and petitioning primary victor Republican Ken MacKenzie. The Courier profiled both candidates last week—find those stories and information on all candidates in addition to all political letters to the editor at Zip06.com/election.
For the Board of Selectmen (BOS), the board is going to look very different after the election and a change in party power is a possibility. Voters are asked to select two of the following candidates: Louis Federici, Jr. (D), Sandra Ruoff (D), Susan Koch Renner (R), and Charles L. Havrda (R). Havrda is the only incumbent running for re-election. The BOS currently has a three to two Republican majority.
In the race for first selectman and BOS, the losing first selectman candidate can still end up on the BOS. Of all six candidates running, the sixth candidate who receives the least amount of votes will not get a seat on the board, meaning the losing first selectman candidate can still get a seat on the BOS if he receive more votes than at least one selectman candidate.
For the Board of Finance, the board may have a new chair for the first time in years as Hoey is running for first selectman, however Hoey’s term on the BOF, like MacKenzie’s, does not expire until 2019. Voters are asked to select four of the following candidates: Veronica C. Wallace (D), Kenneth Gamerman (D), Peter Goletz (R), Jeffrey T. Beatty (R), and Jonathan Trotta (R). Gamerman, Goletz, and Beatty are all incumbents. The BOF currently has a four to three Democratic majority.
Should Hoey and/or MacKenzie be seated on the BOS, the vacancy created on the BOF will be filled by a candidate selected by the BOF and appointed by the BOS.
For the Board of Education, a chair change is not likely as current Chair Bill Bloss (D) is not up for re-election this cycle. For the BOE, voters are asked to select five of the following candidates, all of whom will be elected: Mary Best (D), Moira Rader (D), Amy Sullivan (R), Vincent Baglio (R), and Theodore D. Sands (R). Sullivan and Sands are both incumbents. The BOE currently has a five to four Democratic majority.
For the Board of Assessment Appeals, voters are asked to select one of the following candidates: Arnold Skretta (D) and Michael P. Basso (R). One will be seated.
First selectman, BOS, BOF, BOE, and Board of Assessment Appeals are all four-year terms.
On Election Day, polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Voters in District One vote at Calvin Leete School, 280 South Union Street; voters in District Two vote at Abraham Baldwin Middle School, 68 Bullard Drive; voters in District Three vote at Guilford Fire Department Headquarters, 390 Church Street; voters in District Four vote at Melissa Jones School, 181 Ledge Hill Road; and voters in District Five vote at A.W. Cox School, 143 Three Mile Course.
To check your voting district, check voter registration, or to learn more about absentee ballots, visit www.ci.guilford.ct.us/departments/registrar-of-voters.