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Madison Democrats Announce Slate for November Elections

The Madison Democratic Town Committee (DTC) announced its slate of endorsed candidates this fall, with both new and familiar names on the ballot as they seek to continue a trend of gains for the party in local elections.

Incumbents Al Goldberg and Scott Murphy will be seeking new terms on the Board of Selectmen (BOS), with First Selectmen Peggy Lyons having previously announced she would be seeking another term as well.

On the Board of Education (BOE), incumbent Emily Rosenthal is seeking re-election, while longtime educator Steve Pynn and PTO leader Maureen Hacket Lewis are relative newcomers seeking their first elected positions in Madison.

On the Board of Finance (BOF), Democratic incumbent Jude Friedman will be joined by local real estate agent Cindy Breckheimer, who has also been involved in PTO as well as Madison’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Katie Stein, a current BOE member who previously served as its chair, is also running for a spot on the BOF, though her BOE term does not expire until 2023.

Following the 2019 municipal elections, Democrats had majorities on the BOS and BOE while the BOF has a Republican majority.

DTC Chair Joan Walker said that Democrats have seen a consistent shift in their favor over the last two or three years, with Lyons becoming the first Democratic to win the first selectman’s seat in almost a decade back in 2019, and John-Michael Parker unseating longtime Republican public servant Noreen Kokourda in 2020 for the 101st District state representative job.

“I think overall, the Republican party is in a tough spot right now. The Democrats are a positive party, we’re going to run a positive campaign,” Walker said. “We’re going to show what we’ve done in the last two years on the BOS and the BOE, and we’ll be looking to take the majority on the BOF, because there’s a lot to do in the next two years.”

She also lauded the diversity of ideas and representation of the Democratic slate, calling her party a “big tent” for people with differing backgrounds and approaches to government.

Walker added candidates will continue knocking on doors as long as pandemic conditions allow for that, expecting a somewhat “normal” campaign after last fall saw significant limitations on certain activities and events.

“We don’t want to put anybody in any danger, including our constituents in Madison,” Walker said.