Low turnouts for annual Town Elections are nothing new, but — while an override question in Hanson brought out voters — a nail-biting four-way School Committee contest in Whitman was not enough to boost turnout, according to results.

Only 9 percent — 914 — of Whitman’s 10,900 registered voters cast ballots. In Hanson 1,766 —about 22 percent — of the town’s 7,969 registered voters, cast ballots, according to Town Clerk Elizabeth Sloan.

She attributed the difference in turnout to the $1.8 million override question, which Hanson voters passed, in a break with tradition, by a vote of 1,072 to 677.

“First of all, I’m relieved,” Hanson Police Chief Michael Miksch said of the override result. “The thought of losing seven positions would have been detrimental to our ability to support the town.”

Six officers would have been cut and another position unfilled if the override had failed.

I am pleased that the override passed,” Fire Chief Jerome Thompson Jr. said. “This will allow us to continue to provide fire and EMS services at our current level.  I would like to thank all the residents that came out to vote. The men and women of the Hanson Fire Department appreciate the continued support.”

The Fire Department had faced the prospect of losing four firefighters had the override failed.

“I’m very grateful to the residents and we look forward to serving them as we have in the past,” Miksch said.

Anti-override resident Mark Vess called it “a most tragic day” for the town of Hanson.

“The town of Hanson has been pitted against the Whitman School Committee  and I’m very disappointed that the people that are recovering from Coronavirus, that have been put out of work, that are marginally of income are going to take this in the neck if it passes.”

Election results made official by Whitman Town Clerk Dawn Varley, show two races in the Saturday, May 15 Town Election were decided by six votes.

Incumbent Selectman Dan Salvucci received 443 votes to Rosemary Connolly’s 497.

“Every vote counts,” Salvucci said while sign-holding Satuday morning.

“You’re always a winner when you vote and you speak up,” Connolly said a sshe waved to motorists. “You’re always a winner when you have a voice — you change things. You make change just by running.”

There were 31 blanks and three write-ins. Incumbent School Committee member Fred Small returned for another term with a 406 to 400-vote margin over challenger Heather Clough.

“I’m hoping that my background with education advocacy really speaks to the voters and that they realize that I will do whatever I can to help all of their kids recover from the pandemic,” Clough said, expressing cautious optimism about her campaign.

Incumbent Christopher Scriven coasted to re-election with 525 votes.

He noted that he had a good support system as he commented the School Committee needed more solidarity.
“We need some leadership that’s going to take us in that direction,” Scriven said, also taking note of the number of candidates running for School Committee. “You’ve got to love the interest. It can’t be a bad thing.”

Another of those challengers, William Haran, 21, who is an education major in college received 231 votes.

“Either way, I’ve won by getting information out there and starting conversations,” Haran said of his campaign while holding a sign across the street from Whitman Town Hall Saturday morning. He said he got involved in politics last year when he supported School Committee member David Forth’s campaign.

“Most of the people I’ve walked up to with fliers had already heard of my campaign or were already leaning toward voting for me,” Haran said.

While Connolly put out a letter to constituents over the weekend indicating she would seek a recount, Varley said she has heard nothing yet. Connolly has 10 days — or until May 25 — to request a recount.

“Anybody can ask for a recount — even if it’s 100 votes,” Varley said, noting that it won’t be apparent until 5 p.m., Tuesday, May 25 if there will be a recount.

“With such a narrow margin of only 6 votes, I am moving forward to initiate the process of a recount of ballots, by hand,” Connolly posted online in a message to supporters. “This process is formally outlined by the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts with timelines and requirements to collect 10 signatures from registered voters from each of the four precincts in Whitman.”

She asked voters to contact her at romeyjosie@gmail.com or 617-872-7751 if they wished to support a recount.

For his part, Salvucci thanked the voters for their support.

“Both Rosemary Connolly, and I kept our race for the Board of Selectman above board, with class and energy,” he said. “Winning by such a close amount of votes shows that voters considered both of us as valid candidates.”

That’s her right,” Salvucci said when contacted for comment on Connolly’s interest in a recount. “I’ll be there when it’s done if she get the signatures that are required.”

Small said, in a letter to the Express [see page 10] that he had heard some of his campaign efforts were “a bit much” for a School Committee race.

“While I can understand that sentiment that is not me, if something is worth doing it should be done to the best of your ability,” he stated. “If I am in it, I’m in it to win it!”

Hanson incumbent Selectman Matt Dyer was re-elected with 1,012 votes and Joe Weeks was elected to fill the vacancy left by Selectman Wes Blauss’ decision not to run again — “It’s not my thing,” Blauss said. “I’m done with politics.”

“I think I’ll do alright,” Weeks said about his chances.

Weeks received 903 votes. Write-in candidate Jessica Keegan received 362 votes.

Dyer and Weeks expressed optimism in their chances as they held signs and Dyer said he felt the override would pass as the town saw it’s promise.

For School Committee, Michelle Bourgelas won in the race to fill former Committee Chairman Bob Hayes’ seat, with Daniel Stautman garnering 534 votes.

“I’m thrilled to be elected to the W-H school committee,” she said Saturday evening. “I look forward serving the citizens of Hanson and can’t wait to get started. Thank you to the town for the overwhelming support.”

She had expressed optimism earlier in the day as she held a sign outside Hanson Middle School.

There were nine write-ins and 216 blank ballots returned in that contest.

“I feel pretty good about it,” Strautman said, noting he had been frequently stopped during canvassing by people wanting to talk to him about his campaign.

“I always say, when I meet people, they’re meeting me,” he said, noting his job as a pharmacist gave him some facial recognition with people, even when it didn’t click right away. “It’s great to see those people that I really haven’thad a nonprofessional interaction with recognize me as an individual.”

He said he doesn’t plan on going anywhere win or lose.

Hayes opted to retire from the School Committee after 18 years — 15 of them as chairman [see story page one].

WHITMAN — Candidates for the Board of Selectman and W-H Regional School Committee fielded questions during forums produced and broadcast by Whitman Hanson Community Access TV (WHCA-TV) on Friday, May 7.

The two candidates’ forums are being rebroadcast on the station and are available for streaming on WHCA’s YouTube site.

First up were candidates for the one seat up for grabs this year Board of Selectmen — incumbent Daniel Salvucci and challenger Rosemary Connolly.

WHCA Studio Production Specialist Kevin Tocci served as moderator while Executive Director Eric Dresser was timekeeper. The Whitman-Hanson Express assisted in development of questions for the event.

Connolly, who drew the opportunity to open, said she has served two terms on the Whitman Finance Committee, using skills she has had in the workforce as a staff auditor in that role.

“These are strengths that I can bring to the Selectmen position as we plan forward,” she said. “We would commonly use strategic planning in staff auditing.”

She also stressed her experience can help her govern effectively, identifying where the town can better use state aid where weaknesses such as a good human resources department can leave the town at risk of lawsuits.

Salvucci, has been a member of the Board of Selectmen for 18 years so far, noting he started out on the Finance Committee himself, in the mid ’90s.

“I wanted to increase what I could do for the town,” he said. “I know the budget of this town very well, and have done everything I can — and will continue to do everything I can — to improve this town for our citizens.”

He is a representative and vice chairman of the Old Colony Planning Council and the Metropolitain Planning Organization.

Questions ranged from what makes an ideal selectman; the community survey; the fiscal 2022 town budget; the prospect of de-regionalization; capital projects and personnel decisions.

Salvucci pointed to his work as a manager for Star Market, from which he is retired after 43 years, as lending him the experience in working with people and budgets, looking at projects with an eye to getting things done. Connolly said the ability to serve and listen to constituents and to deliver services is key. She also pointed to her volunteer work in town and the fact that she would be the only female member of the board, and one with children in the school district — the town’s largest budget area and employer.

She said the town has overlooked the process in the effort to implement the findings of a community survey taken a few years ago.

“We have the finances to implement that, but we did not handle our Chapter 70 issues,” she said of the Madden Report survey of town finances. “We diverted $4.5 million into paying for another community’s bills as we ignored what our community was saying in that survey.”

Salvucci countered that Whitman was doing the best it can with what the town has, granting that there was a mistake made in the assessment formula used for the school budget.

“But that is water over the dam,” he said. “We need to go forward. Once we get through this budget season and we continue to bring in businesses … and promote businesses in our town — bring in revenues — we can get things that need to be accomplished, accomplished.”

Salvucci said the town’s budget for the moment, meets the town’s needs, but a lot depends on the coming year before it can be determined whether an override might be necessary in fiscal ’23.

“I don’t want to say we’re going to go for an override in next year’s fiscal budget,” he said. “We don’t know. You don’t know until you see the numbers.”

For her part, Connolly said there is data that can indicate if an override is necessary.

“It is not something you willy-nilly decide,” she said. “And one piece of data they would use is ‘are you funding your primary budget with non-sustainable resources?’”

She charged that the town is making a lot of financially risky moves if it wants to stave off overrides.

“We have to be careful not to be penny-wise and pound foolish,” she said. “The longer you push off an override, the more expensive things get, the larger the override grows.”

About a week after she was first appointed to the Finance Committee, she advocated doing everything at 2 ½ percent as they reviewed town spending, only to spend a lot of money later to have someone else tell the town the same thing. She said she still believes the town needs to review its spending practices to determine what isn’t working.

Salvucci said his “water over the dam” comment was a way to describe Whitman’s effort to help its partner in the W-H Regional School District so as not to “totally cripple them” in the fiscal ’21 budget process.

“Town Meeting said yes, and I always live by, being a selectman, Town Meeting says, I do,” he said.

Salvucci said he doesn’t know the kind of school system being thought of in Hanson’s discussion of de-regionalization, but that he doesn’t think it is something that town can afford. He pointed to Pembroke’s effort to leave the Silver Lake region and, noted that, despite being the larger town, it took them five years to do it.

Connolly agreed, saying Suzanne Bump’s office did an analysis on the subject, and recommended that both towns read it, because they would likely find neither town would be allowed to de-regionalize by the state since it would jeopardize how children could be educated.

That discussion led to a question of the scope and price of a new Whitman Middle School.

“Sometimes these things come down to what we can’t afford,” Connolly said. “We really can’t afford not having a safe building for children.”

The MSBA selected Whitman’s project because it met standards of need, “pretty much above any other town in Massachusetts because this building needs to be rebuilt,” she said.

Salvucci said the state will decide the scope of the project, but “eventually something needs to be done with that middle school.”

In addition to any amount of MSBA reimbursement, both candidates noted that debt for current school loans end and debt service for a new school would begin.

A new DPW building, also on the top of Salvucci’s agenda as a project needed by the town, was also discussed. It had frequently been overtaken as a goal, by other projects including the new police station. Connolly said it is one area on which she and Salvucci see eye to eye, but that the matrix formula, which includes state aid, often leaves the building behind.

They were also asked about the kind of candidate they would like to see hired after Fire Chief Timothy Grenno retires in July. Connolly said the résumé bullet points of working effectively with staff, grant writing and community outreach were important. Salvucci noted that the Civil Service list, peopled with officials who possess qualities to which Connolly referred, would have to dictate the process.

Other questions focused on skills a potential assistant town administrator and salary that should be offered; economic development; the priority for a strategic plan for financial planning; the process for reopening town facilities; and what other issue they find is important.

Visit the WHCA site at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwBGkMC5K4w.