2 min read

Carol Everett, left, and Edie Okenquist, both of Bethel, have been working the Bethel polls for several years; they couldn’t say exactly how long. They were at the American Legion again Tuesday as residents voted on a school budget and two Select Board members, among other items. Rose Lincoln/Staff Photographer

BETHEL — When the polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday night June 10, eight counters were there to tally 520 Bethel ballots. Moderator Carl Casey, School Board member Scott Cole, and Select Board incumbent Frank Del Duca sat in the area outside the ribbons.

Interim Town Clerk Tracy Walker handed over the results.

Two new candidates will join Bethel Select Board. Faye Cristoforo was the top vote getter with 295 votes. Andy Whitney received 213. Next was Incumbent Frank Del Duca with 172 and Randall Grondin with 88 votes.

Cristoforo and Whitney will join the select board table Wednesday at the annual Bethel town meeting.

Newry Select Board results

Advertisement

David Bartlett was the only contender for one Newry Select Board seat after Suzanne Wight withdrew from the race.

Bartlett received 58 votes. He will take Gary Wight’s seat at the next Newry Select Board meeting.

With his new seat on the Newry Select Board, Bartlett will be stepping down from the SAD 44 School Board opening a seat for another school board director to represent Newry.

School Board

In Bethel, Melinda Swayne, of Woodstock, a write-in candidate for school board handily beat incumbent and write-in candidate Marcy Winslow 107-17. In Woodstock Winslow received 24 votes to Swayne’s 17; In Newry the two tied, 50-50. In Greenwood, Swayne received 17 votes to Winslow’s 6.

Other school board candidates ran unopposed. Here are the votes they received in Bethel: Scott Cole 259 (Bethel); Mark Hutchins (Bethel) 339; Erin Cooley (Greenwood) 379; Andrew Baker (Greenwood) 360; Amy Henley (Newry) 362.

Advertisement

School Board budget validation

The school budget passed in Newry, Bethel, Greenwood and Woodstock. A second vote affirmed that voters wished to continue the current two-vote process.

Article 1: The SAD 44 district budget passed 539 in favor; 205 opposed.

Article 2: For the validation referendum 517 voted to stay with the current process versus 199 voting to have the budget finalized solely at the public hearing held in May.

Other seats

In Bethel, two Board of Assessors seats were open and unopposed. Ron Savage received 347 votes. Reginald Brown received 401 votes.

 

Rose Lincoln began as a staff writer and photographer at the Bethel Citizen in October 2022. She and her husband, Mick, and three children have been part time residents in Bethel for 30 years and are happy...

Join the Conversation

Please sign into your Sun Journal account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe. Questions? Please see our FAQs.