But probably the biggest news in that race was the second-place
finisher, Linell M. Grundman. Ms. Grundman received 1,215 votes,
securing her the second seat that was up for grabs. Ms. Grundman
made impressive strides in her campaign and managed to stay just a
few votes behind Mr. Hunt in most of the precincts. In Precinct 7,
she beat out Mr. Hunt, receiving 162 of the votes to Mr. Hunt’s 149.
While selectman candidate John G. Kennan Jr. made a good showing
with 1,163 votes, just 50 votes shy of Ms. Grundman’s totals, he
said he will not be seeking a recount. “I congratulate the winners.
I believe I ran a good campaign. This is a small town and I’m going
to leave things the way they are,” Mr. Kennan said last night.
Steven J. Chapman, the town’s former animal control officer and a
newcomer to local politics, came in last in the race with 448 votes.
Mr. Hunt was celebrating his victory at Two Brothers Pizza and
Mexican on Cotuit Road last night and in a telephone interview said
that he felt like he had a lot of good support.
“We ran a good race and I said where I stood. No matter how things
turned out, I was happy with what we did,” Mr. Hunt said. Ms.
Grundman credited her victory to her knowledge of the issues. “I’m
doing my homework. I’ve been a political player for the past six
years and I know the issues. The people want a different voice but
they also want somebody who is [familiar] with the issues. It is
very affirming,” Ms. Grundman said.
When it came to the school committee race, voters made it clear that
they like the way things are going there. Both incumbents, S. Aleta
Barton and Robert F. Simmons Jr., retained their seats on that
board, with Mr. Simmons the top vote getter with 1,458 votes and Ms.
Barton close behind with 1,272.
Holly Ridge Golf Club was the place to be last night when the
winners gathered to celebrate one another’s victories.
Selectmen Thomas F. Keyes, Frank Pannorfi, and Adam G. Chaprales
made their way over to the clubhouse to congratulate Ms. Barton and
Mr. Simmons and to welcome Ms. Grundman to the board.
School committee candidate Dr. Michele E. Merolla, who had been a
controversial figure in the race due to his last-minute registration
as a Sandwich resident and his strong opinions, earned 996 votes
during yesterday’s vote. Dr. Merolla had run on a platform of
cost-cutting initiatives and a promise to bring many more
efficiencies to the school’s budget process.
The final candidate in the race, Jose F. Correia, earned 556 votes
in this, his first foray into town politics.
Ms. Barton said she was grateful for her win because it allows her
to continue with the good work that she has been doing. She said
many of the important things that she is involved in occur behind
the scenes, including serving as chairman of the Covenant Steering
Committee, a group made up of selectmen and school committee members
who are trying to find ways to improve efficiencies in town.
Mr. Simmons said he believes that his win is representative of the
fact that residents recognize that his only motivation for serving
on the school board is to improve the schools. “They think we did a
good job and they are sending the two of us back,” Mr. Simmons said.
Although he had been considered a front runner in the race, Mr.
Simmons said he was feeling a bit nervous about the election this
week, especially since his daughter, Victoria Simmons, a student at
Sandwich High School, was elected to serve as the student
representative on the school board beginning next fall.
In the planning board race for two full-term seats, voters handed
incumbent Joseph A. Vaudo a victory along with Richard A. Claytor
Jr., both of whom earned the three-year seats on that board, beating
Sean H. Moloney. Mr. Vaudo received 1,246 votes, Mr. Claytor
received 1,211, and Mr. Moloney received 996. Daniel E. Marsters,
who was appointed this year to fill a vacancy on that board, was
elected to serve a two-year term. He beat out challenger Ralph A.
Vitacco, but only by a narrow margin of 20 votes, 885 to 865.
Voter turnout in this year’s election was quite low. According to
Town Clerk Barbara J. Walling, only 2,486 out of the 14,754
registered voters went to the polls yesterday. “That’s only 16
percent,” she said. Ms. Walling, who ran unopposed for her
position as town clerk, was reelected to the post, earning 1,960
votes.
While she was happy with her victory, she was a bit happier that the
ballot question to change the date of Town Meeting from the first
Monday in May to the first Saturday in May failed. The question
lost by a margin of 1,471 to 785.
Things at the town clerk’s office got a bit tense when there was a
problem with the computer reading the software program that
calculates and tallies the votes. While all of the ballots had been
returned to the office before 8:30 PM, it took nearly 20 minutes to
get the computer working to read the results.