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Date: 6/13/2022
BELCHERTOWN – With the resignation of board member Nicholas Pucel, the Belchertown Select Board set the date for the special election to replace him for Oct. 3 and debated the board’s reorganization process during its June 6 meeting.
Board member Ron Aponte started the discussion and said it was important to host the election soon despite summer vacations.
“I think it is certainly in the board’s best interest as well as the town’s best interest to fill that position. Looking at the dates, I don’t like having summer elections but there is absentee voting and things along those lines, but I would be more comfortable with [Aug.] 8 or [Aug.] 15,” he said.
When asked about hosting a dual election with the primary in September or midterm election in November, Town Clerk Terry Camerlin said it was possible, but it could be a challenge.
“Number one is going to be that the town election has to follow the rules of a state election, the biggest one is going to be early voting so that means early voting would apply to this. The second would be you would have a total of three ballots that day – a Democratic ballot, a Republican ballot for the primary and then the town ballot. There would have to be two separate check ins and check outs,” she said.
By combining the special with the preliminary or midterm, Camerlin said there could be a strain on poll workers with the weight of an additional election, but it would be doable. She added that her preferred date for the election would be Aug. 8.
“Just because of the volume, if you’re dealing with the same deadline to get the same amount of work out but now, you’re doubling the workload and you still have the same deadline so I would probably pull in my registrars to help do that because two people could not handle that,” she said.
Regardless of if it was just a special election or combined election, Camerlin said the price would be the same because the dual election would require more workers than a single one.
Board member Ed Boscher said he would be in favor of combining the special election with the midterm election in November, which over the past several years averaged between 57 percent and 84 percent voter turnout, while the town election in May averaged between 5 percent and 14 percent over the same time frame. He added he was concerned about adding another election to the year.
“If we keep it separate that would be the fifth election in one calendar year, I think that is voter fatigue. I think we should keep the course and make it as easy as possible on voters. Bringing them back five times in the same calendar year, that doesn’t make sense to me,” he said. “For this election I think we need as broad a number as possible.”
Citing the recall election in January, Vice Chair Jim Barry said people would come out to the election.
“I think we received 2,500 votes at the recall election in January, which is probably one of the larger numbers we’ve had for any municipal election, so getting out the vote is not the problem,” he said. “That organization can be easily mobilized in favor of at least one of the candidates that I know of.”
Board Chair Jen Turner said she was against having the election in August.
“I just feel like it is very rushed to have it in August, there’s not enough time for people if they’re going to consider doing it. With a four-person board we’d have to be paying attention to building consensus more, it helps bring us back together as a board; there’s a lot that’s happened in the last couple months,” she said.
Camerlin said if the election is important, voters will show up and it may be better to keep it away from the primary or midterm elections.
“Since I’ve been in this position, I feel like my job has been to get 100 percent voter turnout. That’s why the sandwich boards are out every day, and the Facebook messages go out and the robocalls. I’m on board with we need to get more voter participation, whether you get more voter participation by tacking on to an election, I’m not sure because they’re not coming out for the town, they’re coming out for the federal,” she said. “If you’re trying to get more exposure in the town, perhaps having it separate is a better way to get it across.”
After shooting down the Nov. 8 and Aug. 8 election dates, the board agreed to set the special election for Oct. 3 with a 3-1 vote.
Following the election discussion, the board was set to reorganize after pushing the decision off with Aponte absent from the prior meeting. To start the discussion, Boscher motioned to name Turner the chair for another session, citing the good work she has done over the past year.
Aponte said he was in favor of continuing the rotation among positions the board has done for years and said he would be in favor of naming Barry the chair.
“It’s always been past practice to have a rotation; I know that a lot of other communities don’t have rotations but ever since I have been on the board and for years prior to that, we’ve adhered to the rotation because it keeps a fresh perspective and everyone moving, as such I think Jim [Barry] is certainly qualified and has the experience; he’s been chair of the Select Board, he’s been chair of the Planning Board for many years, so I would be in support of keeping the rotation,” he said.
While Aponte spoke highly of Barry and his respect for him and the work he has done, Boscher said he was against appointing Barry as the chair. “I’ve had a different experience Ron, truly,” Boscher said.
Barry responded, and said Boscher has not experienced Barry as a chair during his tenure on the board.
“You’ve had no experience with me as a chair and my ability to run a meeting and give you whatever time you need to make your argument and let the votes fall where they may, that’s what a chair does. I don’t think I’ve ever cut you off from debate or would cut you off from debate; I have no past history of doing that to everyone. To break precedent simply because you don’t like me Ed, I think is ridiculous,” he said.
Turner said she wanted to continue as chair with concerns about transparency over the past several months and what could happen if a new chair took over.
“Information has historically been selective in its dissemination among the board members, and I am all for transparency, open communication and accountability. I’m frustrated and I would like the stream of communication to continue, and I am concerned moving forward that will not happen,” she said.
After Turner admitted to a lack of contact with Town Administrator Gary Brougham over the last month, Barry said it was imperative to have a chair that was in close communication with Brougham.
“If we want to move forward and reel the town administrator back to where we all would like him to be, you may very well be a problem and not a solution,” he said. “There is no communication; in keeping this person in this position, which is a key communication position, claiming transparency and communication clearly is not going to work.”
Despite the precedent of rotating the chair each year, Turner said things could change.
“I understand that it’s a custom in this town to rotate the board, it is not a law, it is not a statute. It’s been expected for however many years, but it doesn’t have to be that way,” she said.
Barry cautioned that it could be dangerous to throw out the precedent of rotating the chair.
“We move forward, that’s what democracy is, that’s what process is, that’s what precedent is all about. We’re talking about the Supreme Court destroying precedent and everybody is concerned about precedent and that’s okay,” he said.
With a 2-2 vote, Turner did not maintain her seat as the chair. Aponte then nominated Barry, which also failed with a 2-2 vote. To try to break the deadlock, Barry nominated Aponte but that motion was also denied with a 2-2 vote.
Ultimately the board agreed to seek input from town counsel before proceeding because the initial vote to name Turner the chair in 2021 did not include an end date.
The Belchertown Select Board next met on June 13 and coverage of that meeting will appear in the June 24 edition of The Reminder.