Sapelli says town ‘in good hands’ with Johnson as mayor

Date: 11/16/2023

AGAWAM — Former Mayor Chris Johnson will be returning to that office after beating Cecilia Calabrese in the town election Nov. 7.

Johnson, who currently serves as City Council president, won the two-way race with 3,221 votes, 53% of the total. Calabrese, who is also on the City Council, received 2,713 votes for 44.3%.

On election night at Casa di Lisa in Feeding Hills, Johnson’s supporters cheered upon hearing the results. Johnson gave a short speech thanking his campaign staff, his wife Anna, his partners at the law firm for which he works, and incumbent Mayor William Sapelli.

“If you really care about the town and you want it left in good hands, I couldn’t be happier,” said Sapelli, who chose not to run for reelection after six years in office.

That night, Johnson said he was happy and appreciative that voters put their trust in him. He believes he won because had “the best combination of leadership and experience.” He said the vote sent the message that the people of Agawam trust in these leadership skills.

“I’m just very appreciative for all the people that came out and voted today,” he said. “I look forward to working very hard to make Agawam a great place to live, work, and raise a family. That’s the only promise I’ve ever made, and I ever will make is that they’re going to get 100% of my effort.”

Johnson was the town’s first mayor, serving five two-year terms in the 1990s. He later returned to town politics as a city councilor, and was elected by his peers as council president in 2018. He has been the council’s leader since then.

For the first four years of his term as president, Calabrese served as his vice president, before opting to give up the position in 2022. Johnson said he and Calabrese have been friends for a long time, and he feels they both ran fair campaigns. He described the election as both trying for the same job, but only one of them could get it.

“I appreciate the fact that she worked hard, and she had a lot of very strong supporters, but like I said, I’m grateful that the people placed their trust in me,” he said.

Between now and the start of his term in January, Johnson said he will work with Sapelli on a transition plan. The plan will get him involved in the day-to-day operation of the town. On day one, Johnson plans to host a staff meeting to get to know everyone.

Asked what will be different this time around, Johnson said politics in Agawam have changed tremendously in the past 30 years.

“What I think will be different now is that we have a City Council and a School Committee that like to work cooperatively together to get things done,” he said. “I hope to be able to continue to foster that spirit of collaboration.”

Two days after the election, Calabrese told Reminder Publishing she was disappointed by the results but proud of the campaign she ran. She said she felt humbled, and she appreciated her volunteers.

“Obviously I would’ve loved to have won the election, but I love my personal life, so now that I’m going to be a private citizen again, I get to enjoy my family a lot more,” she said.

Calabrese said the campaign proved it’s possible to be political without being nasty. She said she and Johnson had a friendly competition. People would comment to her about how cordial they are with each other.

“It was a demonstration that two people can want the same job, can be competitive in applying for that job, and we can walk away shaking hands,” she said.

On Election Day, she called Johnson to concede and congratulated him. She said people told her she should demand a recount. She heavily disagreed.

“It’s very disruptive and unfair,” she said. “To me, he ran fair and square.”

After a run of council victories, Calabrese has now lost elections two years in a row, with an unsuccessful bid for state senator in 2022. She said she has no plans to run for state Legislature in 2024, despite requests. She said she is already happy with Agawam’s state representative and has no interest in making a second attempt for the Senate. She also believes it’s too soon to decide whether she will run to rejoin the City Council in 2025.

Due to a “cool-down period” written into Agawam’s town charter, Calabrese cannot hold any local appointed office for the next year. Nonetheless, she said she will keep paying attention and be outspoken. She also encourages Agawam citizens to pay attention and be active.

Calabrese said she is sad the things she wanted to do for seniors “most likely won’t happen now.” She said Johnson has different priorities, and said she worries about taxes and other costs of living. Ultimately, she praised the community, saying the people are the best part of Agawam.

Calabrese thanked her husband Michael, her children Charles and Michaela, her campaign manager, and her volunteers.

There were 60 write-in votes in the mayoral race, for a total turnout of 6,081 out of the town’s 22,068 registered voters. Town Clerk Vincent Gioscia said there were no irregularities or incidents at the polls.

This year’s election also saw contested races for the City Council and School Committee. With Calabrese and Johnson running for mayor, and City Councilor Paul Cavallo opting not to run for reelection, there will be three new faces on the council even though all the other incumbents won reelection.

New candidate Edward Borgatti was the top vote-getter among all council candidates, with 4,255. Following him were incumbents Anthony Russo (3,770), Robert Rossi (3,413), George Bitzas (3,376), Dino Mercadante (3,367), Rosemary Sandlin (3,221), Anthony Suffriti (3,164) and Gerald Smith (2,915); challenger Maria Valego (2,606); incumbent Thomas Hendrickson (2,602); and challenger Peter Smus (2,345), who took the 11th and final council seat. Former Mayor Susan Dawson received 1,989 votes and was the only council candidate not elected.

On the School Committee, all five incumbents running for reelection won their seats — Shelley Borgatti-Reed (3,579 votes), Dawn DeMatteo (3,207), Michael Perry (3,193), A.J. Christopher (3,147) and Wendy Rua (3,062) — as did challenger Catherine McDougal, with 2,716 votes. McDougal will take the place of current committee member Kerri O’Connor, who opted not to run for reelection. Fellow challenger Christopher Pass (2,436 votes) did not win a seat on the School Committee.

The mayor, City Council and School Committee terms all run two years and begin in January 2024.