Some oddities and some mysteries in the 2021 municipal elections

The municipal elections on Nov. 2 did not, for the most part, have a lot of drama, but there were a few oddities.

This year, for reasons that are not immediately apparent, there were many petitioning candidates, including a few incumbents and several individuals who are well known in their communities.

The general rule of thumb in elections is that voters don’t stray from the party lines. In this election, they did, giving victories to several of the petitioners.

Overall, when there was a contest this year the seat went to the candidate who was endorsed by the Democrats.

Cornwall

In Cornwall, incumbent Selectman Priscilla Pavel ran as petitioning and regained her seat, with 217 votes.

Incumbent First Selectman Gordon Ridgway was returned with 494 votes. Janet Carlson, who’s new to the Board of Selectmen but has been very active in the community and the West Cornwall economic development efforts, won as second selectman in the Democrat line with 225 votes.

Canaan/Falls Village

All three incumbent selectmen were returned to the board. There were only three contested seats, which all went to the Democratic candidates.

On the Board of Finance, cross-endorsed incumbent and board Chair Richard Heinz was returned to his seat. Democrat Amy Wynn joins the board as a full member, Democrat David Wilburn joins as an alternate; Republican candidates Eric Carlson (an incumbent alternate on the board) and Karl Munson did not win seats.

Republican Lee Baldwin lost to Democrat Warren Whitaker for an alternate seat on the Zoning Board of Appeals.

Cross-endorsed candidate Patricia Mechare was returned to the Region One Board of Education, where she is the chair.

Kent

In Kent, four candidates ran for first selectman, including incumbent Democrat Jean Speck and incumbent Republican Selectman Ed Matson. Rufus P. DeRham and James Rundall both ran as petitioning candidates.

Democrat Glenn Sanchez was the only candidate who ran for a seat as selectman.

In Kent as in many towns, unsuccessful candidates for first selectman can win a seat as a regular selectman if they get enough votes. This year, Sanchez got more votes than any of the other four candidates (755 votes), and slid with ease onto the board.

Speck was returned to first selectman with 469 votes. Matson and Rundall did not earn seats, but DeRham, a veteran of many boards and commissions in town (including the Board of Selectmen, but not in recent years), won a seat as third selectman with 404 votes.

Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Matt Winter ran as a petitioning candidate but lost his seat, with 289 votes.

Incumbent Planning and Zoning commission member  Democrat Alice Hicks was returned to the commission with 630 votes and Democrat  David Birnbaum, who is an alternate on the commission, got 506 votes and is now a full member. Republican challenger Michael Gawel got 392 votes and did not get a seat on the commission.

North Canaan

The three incumbent selectmen were unchallenged and all return, with Republican Charlie Perotti as first selectman and Democrat Christian Allyn and Republican Craig Whiting filling out the three-person board.

One candidate for Planning and Zoning was left off the absentee ballot and had to be added back in. Nonetheless, Democrat Tim Abbott succeeded in earning a seat on the commission, alongside Republicans Dalton Jacquier and former First Selectman Doug Humes.

Incumbent Chairman Steve Allyn was not returned to the board, in what was a trend for this election.

There was no candidate for the town’s representative to the Region One Board of Education, which oversees the high school and shared school services such as special education and the office of the regional administrators and schools supervisor.

The incumbent candidate had withdrawn for personal reasons. The new representative will be appointed by the Board of Selectmen.

Salisbury

Salisbury was the third town to remove a Planning and Zoning chairman from his seat. In this case, it was former chairman Jon Higgins, who had led the commission for many years, up until 2008.

Michael Klemens, who has been chair since 2010, was not up for reelection this year.

But two longtime members were: Democrats Martin Whalen and Allen Cockerline, as was Democrat Cathy Shyer. All three were returned to their seats, but Higgins was not.

Rick Cantele, who is president and CEO of Salisbury Bank and Trust and a Northwest Corner native, ran as a petitioning candidate for a vacated seat on the Board of Finance, which he will hold for the next four years.

On  the Region One Board of Education, incumbent Stacie Weiner ran as a petitioning candidate and lost her seat to Democrat Keith Moon, who is at present the vice chairman of the town of Salisbury Board of Education, which governs Salisbury Central School.

Jacqueline Rice, a native of Salisbury and a former teacher at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, ran as a petitioning candidate for the Salisbury Board of Education and won her seat, as did the other two candidates, Democrats Thomas Carter and Elizabeth Dittmer. The three candidates were unopposed.

Sharon

In Sharon, everyone who ran for office was elected.

The full vote tallies for each town are linked below.

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In Kent, four candidates ran for Board of  Selectmen. Photo by Lans Christensen

Voting in Kent. Photo by Lans Christensen

In Kent, four candidates ran for Board of  Selectmen. Photo by Lans Christensen