Selectmen race to headline annual town election

The field has been set for the 2018 annual town election, and once again all eyes will be on the Board of Selectmen, where incumbents Kevin Feeney and Mark Porter will look to fend off a challenge from newcomer Kathy McCormack in the lone contested race on the ballot.

In addition to the three selectmen candidates, eight others filed nomination papers with the town clerk’s office by last Tuesday’s deadline and all eight are running unopposed in the April 3 election. Six of those candidates are incumbents: Town Clerk Tracy Kenney, Assessor Rocco Digirolamo, School Committee member Kristin Mirliani, Library Trustees Joan Schottenfeld and Bernard Mendillo, and Planning Board member Patricia McDermott, who is seeking a full five-year term after defeating Patrick Manning last spring for a one-year seat (to fill a vacancy).

Also running for a full term this spring is Board of Health member Dr. Alan Rapoport, who was appointed in September following the passing of Dr. Richard Levrault. Additionally, Nichola Gallagher, who currently serves on the Finance Committee, is running unopposed to fill the remaining two years of School Committee member John Bonnanzio’s term. Bonnanzio, a 12-year veteran who was reelected last April, announced in January that he would be stepping down just prior to the upcoming election.

Of the nine total incumbents whose terms are set to expire this year, all but one — Library Trustee Joyce Wiseman — filed nomination papers to seek another term. No one else sought Wiseman’s post and it will be vacant on the April ballot.

As for the selectmen’s race, this year marks the third time in the last four years that voters will have a choice of candidates for the town’s chief executive board. Feeney and Porter, who took the top two spots in a crowded field in 2015, will both be vying for their second terms, while McCormack is eyeing her first term in elected office after recently serving a stint alongside her two opponents as an appointed member of the town’s Blue Ribbon Traffic Committee.

Additional information about each of the selectmen candidates and their views on key town issues will be featured in upcoming editions of the Canton Citizen.

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Posted by Jay Turner on Feb 23 2018. Filed under News, Schools, Town Election, Town Government. Both comments and pings are currently closed.