Voters cast their ballots at Joseph Metcalf School in Holyoke on Election Day.
Reminder Publishing photos by Tyler Garnet
HOLYOKE — Holyoke saw two longtime city councilors lose their seats in contested races amid a 17% voter turnout.
One of them, At Large City Councilor Kevin Jourdain, currently serving in his 14th term on the City Council, captured 105 less votes than the final elected councilor, meaning he will no longer be part of the body come January.
In a statement posted to Facebook, Jourdain said, “As for me, I am pleased to have served the city for nearly three decades and to have stayed true to my principles and ideals throughout. I will always be proud to be ‘Holyoke’s Fiscal Watchdog’ and to have served this city faithfully and honorably. I do regret the vile and deeply personal nature of the campaign waged against me and several other like-minded candidates this cycle. Not only was it personally demonizing, but more importantly I consider it poor precedent for our city and its future.”
This year’s City Council at large race featured nine candidates vying for six spots.
The top vote getters were Patrcia Devine with 3,030 votes, Tessa Murhpy-Romboletti with 2,974, Israel Rivera with 2,888 votes, Mimi Pantich with 2,768 votes, Michael Sullivan with 2,251 votes and Howard Greaney with 2,173 votes. Pantich is the only newcomer in the bunch; the rest are incumbents.
In Ward 1, Jenny Rivera defeated challenger Victor Machado by 19 votes to continue her run on the City Council.
Ward 2 will welcome a new face as Nicole Maisonet ran unopposed and received 222 votes.
Ward 3 also saw a shakeup on the City Council as challenger Anne Thalheimer beat longtime incumbent David Bartley by 64 votes. Bartley was seeking his eighth term.
Another new face will be joining the City Council in January, as Richard Purcell defeated Peter Diaz Jr. in the Ward 4 race by receiving 120 more votes than his challenger. Incumbent Kocayne Givner did not seek reelection.
Elsewhere, incumbents Linda Vacon, Juan Anderson-Burgos and Meg Magrath-Smith were reelected to serve their respective wards after running uncontested.
School Committee and mayor
For the Holyoke School Committee, Jens Michaelsen received 609 votes, or 60.24%, to capture the Ward 5 seat, while challenger Aida Oquendo received 402 votes. Incumbent John Whelihan did not run for reelection.
Although there was no candidate listed for Ward 6 after William Collamore announced he would not run for reelection, Patty Lubold captured 230 write-in votes to secure the Ward 6 School Committee seat. Christian Carde fell short with 153 write-in votes.
Incumbents Gladys Lebron-Martinez, Rosalee Tensley Williams, Yadilette Rivera-Colon, Orlando Isaza and Ellie Wilson were all elected to serve their respective wards on the School Committee.
At Large School Committee members and incumbents Mildred Lefebvre and Devin Sheehan were also reelected after receiving 3,528 and 3,793 votes respectively.
The mayor’s race, meanwhile, was quiet this year, as Mayor Joshua Garcia ran unopposed and received 3,780 votes. There were also 392 write-in votes, according to results.
Elsewhere, City Clerk Brenna Murphy Leary will once again serve the role after receiving 3,964 votes.
