To the Editor;
I’m writing to express my concern that this year’s election was poorly conducted and has eroded my faith in the process here in Rochester. First we experienced misprinted mail in ballots. The original mail in ballots said “vote for one” in the RMS School Committee Race and vote for one in the Library Trustees Race. Both should have read “vote for two”.
In a very close election it is vital that every detail is managed correctly. In the RMS race one of the candidates lost by just 24 votes. There were 221 blanks in that race, meaning that 221 second votes were not cast in that election. Think about it, 221 blanks, that is double from the last school committee race that took place in 2022 where there were also four candidates vying for two seats. I believe the mail-in ballot debacle contributed significantly to this excessive number of blanks.
Here in Rochester, we elect our Town Clerk. Popular candidates with the best intentions may not be the right choice. Or there may be only one candidate to choose from. The town clerk doesn’t make political decisions. They are there to do a job. I suggest that we no longer elect our town clerk, but hire through the select board, a vetted professional with experience and expertise to manage our elections. Rather than selecting from among those who simply choose to run every three years, we should hire from an array of qualified individuals.
Michael Kovacevich , Rochester
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