A voter checks in at the Southwick Senior Center for the May 14 town election.
Reminder Publishing photo by Marc St. Onge
SOUTHWICK — The chairs of the Select Board and the School Committee both retained their elected seats on May 14, but one race was much closer than the other.
Select Board member Douglas Moglin, who currently serves as chair, took 73% of the vote, defeating write-in candidate David “Butch” LaBombard 1,003 votes to 164 to earn a fourth three-year term on the board, according to results provide by acting Town Clerk Jessica Menzone.
“I am honored to have been overwhelmingly re-elected to the Southwick Select Board,” Moglin said in an email statement. “I look forward to continuing to serve the people of the town, and as always remain accessible and available to listen to anyone.”
LaBombard said he knew that his write-in bid, announced after nominations had closed, was a long shot. He said he does intend to run for Select Board again, though probably not against incumbent Jason Perron, whose term is up in 2025.
The current chair of the Southwick-Tolland-Granville Regional School Committee, by contrast, held on to his seat by just an 81-vote margin. Robert Stevenson took 710 votes, or 53%, in his race against Kim Perron, who garnered 629 votes. There were 30 write-in votes.
“I wanted to thank everyone that came out and voted for me today. I really appreciate everyone’s support,” Stevenson posted on social media. “I want to thank Kim Kowalski Perron for a spirited campaign. I wish her all the best in the future.”
Perron, who is Jason’s wife, also thanked her supporters and wrote that she is “confident that this race created increased interest in STGRSD within our community. I know it will serve as the foundation for forthcoming work to improve the educational experience for students and families, as well as improve awareness among taxpayers regarding their return on investment at the schools.”
In the only other contested race on the ballot, an open seat on the Community Preservation Committee, Briana Duncan defeated Bryan Walker by 85 votes for a three-year term on the committee. Duncan received 668, or 53%, to Walker’s 583 votes, or 47%. There were 125 blank ballots, according to the official results.
While there were two open seats on the Parks and Recreation Commission and two official candidates, incumbent Richard Harriman and Daniel Welch, they also faced a write-in challenge, from incumbent Jeanne Reed, who hadn’t filed nomination papers. Reed got 67 votes to Harriman’s 874 and Welch’s 749.
In the other uncontested seats on the ballot, John Francis Cain was re-elected as assessor; Darcie Rock was elected to the Cemetery Commission; Dean Rankin was re-elected to the Dickinson School Board of Trustees; Patricia Labieniec was elected to the Board of Health; Jennifer Belden and Tracy Meczywor were re-elected to the Library Board of Trustees for a three-year term; Andrea Louise Bugbee was elected for a two-year term on the library board; David Sutton was re-elected to the Planning Board; and David Meczywor was re-elected to the Water Commission.
