Herrmann wins in landslide; Republicans victorious in all contested races (complete results included)

Written by Brad Durrell
Thursday, 05 November 2009 17:58

Note: Complete Easton election results appear at the end of this article.

First Selectman Tom Herrmann coasted to victory Tuesday, leading a Republican landslide at the polls.

Herrmann, seeking his second term, defeated Democratic challenger Chris Neubert, 1,583-617, or 72% to 28%.

“We’ve worked hard to lead the town in a nonpartisan way,” said Herrmann, adding that his goal is to continue trying to find consensus on issues facing the town.

Neubert, who congratulated Herrmann as soon as the results were announced at Samuel Staples Elementary School, said he wished Herrmann well as the town’s chief elected official.

“We all want him to do well because now we’re all united,” Neubert said.

Republican Scott Centrella and Democrat Bob Lessler were re-elected to the Board of Selectmen, and GOP Town Clerk Derek Buckley easily won re-election.

For the Board of Finance, Republican Mark Pompa won the two-year seat so Democrats Elise Broach and Art Laske automatically were victorious in the contest for six-year seats due to minority-party representation rules.

State law requires seats on certain boards — including finance, land-use and non-regional school boards — be reserved for a non-majority party to try to keep the boards as nonpartisan as possible.

For the Region 9 Board of Education, Republicans Catherine Gombos and William Baker were the winners.

None of the other races on the ballot, other than constable, were contested. See list at end for constable results.

Turnout was about 40%, with Easton having about 5,430 registered voters.

In general, Republican candidates generally ran at least 300 or 400 votes ahead of their Democratic opponents.

The Republicans had run as “proven leaders,” pointing to minimal tax increases during the past two years despite the troubled economy. They also had emphasized their efforts to keep politics out of the day-to-day operation of town government.

Democrats had said they would provide the town school system with more money, and claimed Easton property values were dropping faster than in nearby towns under GOP leadership due to inadequate education funding.

‘No big issues’

Republican Party Chairman Hugh Barry said the GOP’s big win shows the public is happy with the job they are doing.

“There were no big issues,” Barry said. “Mr. Neubert is a nice man, cordial and talented, but there was no reason to change.”

Barry said he thought it was “a fair contest,” with no below-the-belt campaigning by either side. He did express disappointment in the low voter turnout.

Democratic Party Chairman Ron Kowalski said it was “a hard-fought campaign,” but now it’s over. “The most important thing now is for everyone to work together on the issues facing the town,” he said.

Kowalski said this included “adequately funding the school system while keeping taxes down.” He also hopes the GOP-controlled Board of Finance will work “cooperatively” with other town boards, he said.

Herrmann said while he’s pleased with his large plurality, he still hopes to convince other voters to support him in the future. “I serve all of the voters of Easton — and that’s the way it will always be,” he said.

He hopes to work closely with Democrats as well as Republicans during the next two years. “We are one town, even though we divide ourselves into two political parties at this time of the year,” Herrmann said.

Fellow Republican Centrella will continue to serve with Herrmann on the Board of Selectmen, as will longtime Democratic Selectman Lessler.

Centrella said he was “delighted” with the results. “It was a good campaign,” he said. “We worked hard. It was a team effort. Everyone involved was very engaged.”

He said the Democrats had made a valiant effort. “Hats off to the Democrats,” he said. “We had a good dialogue.”

Lessler said he was grateful to be given the opportunity to serve Easton residents for another two years. “Obviously I’m disappointed our candidates didn’t do better,” he said. “We offered strong candidates.”

He said many challenges await the town in 2010 and beyond. “I suspect Saddle Ridge will occupy a lot of our time during the next two years,” Lessler said. “Also, the economy will continue to make town budgets a challenge.”

Town clerk race

Buckley, a Republican re-elected as town clerk, said “honesty, integrity and competence had won the day.”

He said he was certain of victory, despite a spirited challenge by Democrat Michael Kivell. “I had a lot of confidence in the voters being able to recognize what’s been achieved, and welcome the opportunity to continue to serve,” Buckley said.

Kivell said he “gave my best effort” and may run again in the future. He said he enjoyed walking door-to-door to meet with voters. “It was a super opportunity,” he said.

Like many other Democrats, Kivell said it was a Republican night and coattails from the top of the ticket had boosted the numbers of other Republicans on the ballot. “It’s a challenge being a Democrat in this town,” he said.

During the campaign, Democrats appeared to view Buckley and Board of Finance member Pompa as the most vulnerable Republican candidates. However, both Buckley and Pompa won solid victories.

Pompa said he was gratified with the support he received from the community and appreciative of the help of campaign volunteers.

“Now the hard work begins,” said Pompa, noting he wants to bring a zero-based budgeting approach to town finance and to do more long-range fiscal planning.

Broach, a Democrat re-elected to the finance board, said the results were “disappointing but not shocking. I think the Republican Party should feel good about their support in the community right now.”

While she might not like the outcome, Broach said, “I respect the voters’ opinion.”

Results

Results were (those in Italic are winners):

First selectman:

(R) Tom Herrmann, 1,583

(D) Chris Neubert, 617

Selectman:

(R) Scott Centrella, 1,382*

(D) Bob Lessler, 794*

Town clerk:

(R) Derek Buckley, 1,301

(D) Mike Kivell, 879

Town treasurer:

(R) John Campbell, 1,682

Tax collector:

(R) Patrice Hildenbrand, 1,677

Board of Finance (two years):

(R) Mark Pompa, 1,256

(D) Tom Partridge, 900

Board of Finance (six years):

(R) Christine Calvert, 1,242

(R) Christian Griffin, 1,131

(D) Art Laske, 976**

(D) Elise Broach, 944**

Region 9 Board of Education:

(R) Catherine Gombos, 1,341

(R) William Baker, 1,261

(D) Margot Abrams, 867

(D) Ryan Walker, 779

Easton Board of Education:

(R) Adam Dunsby, 1,259

(D) Elin Cohen, 863

Zoning Board of Appeals:

(R) Victor George, 1,645

(R) Mitchell Greenberg, 1,653

Board of Assessment Appeals:

(D) Judy Weinstein, 1,272

Library Trustee:

(R) Gina Orticelli, 1,257

(D) Elaine Spicer, 855

Constable (top seven win):

(R) Joseph Silhavy, 1,257

(R) Jack Johnston, 1,206

(R) George Beno, 1,189

(R) Gary Stevens, 1,007

(D) Irv Silverman, 1,037

(D) Dick Greiser, 930

(D) Gloria Bindelglass, 846

(D) David Katz, 757

*Both candidates were elected to the Board of Selectmen

**Candidates won due to minority-party representation rules despite receiving fewer votes