NORTHAMPTON — Five new Northampton City Councilors and seven new School Committee members will serve the community at the start of the new year.
According to unofficial results of the Nov. 4 general election, newcomers joining the council include Meg Robbins in an at large role, Gwenerva Nabad in Ward 1, Laurie Loisel in Ward 3, Aline Davis in Ward 5 and Chris Stratton in Ward 6.
On the School Committee, Tiffany Jewell and Roberta “Robbie” Saner Sullivan were elected as newcomers to the at large seats, along with Alena Bartoli in Ward 1, Renika Montgomery-Tamakloe in Ward 3, Amy Martyn in Ward 5, Cynthia Mahoney in Ward 6 and Valerie Reiss in Ward 7. Ward 2 member Anat Weisenfreund was elected for the first time in this election, after having already served on the committee since January following the resignation of previous committee member Karen Foster.
Every City Council race was contested on this year’s ballot except for Ward 4, where incumbent Councilor Jeremy Dubs was reelected unopposed. The School Committee featured five of its wards decided through uncontested races.
The city saw 21,933 voters turn out for this election, a 42.86% turnout rate. In the 2023 municipal election, 22,444 voters made it to the polls.
City Council
In the at large City Council race, Robbins and incumbent Garrick Perry were elected, securing 4,235 and 4,206 votes respectively, defeating opponents Deborah Henson and Benjamin Spencer.
Robbins is a history teacher, researcher and organizer who told Reminder Publishing in the leadup to the election that she was a big picture, but detailed thinker. Robbins represented Ward 1 on the School Committee for one term until she was redistricted out of that ward.
She eventually lost a three-way race for an at large seat in 2023.
“My recent term on the NPS School Committee and activity with many council and committee sessions give me the foundation to explore change in effective and collaborative council options and outcomes focused on far more open constituent representation,” said Robbins.
Perry was reelected after his first term as an at large councilor. Before that, he served a term as the Ward 4 representative starting in 2021. He told Reminder Publishing leading up to the election that his passion for the city is undeniable, as he has spent his life brining “positivity, creative energy, collaboration and vision to Northampton.”
“Northampton’s greatest gift is our people, and I want to work with you all,” he said. “With a history of bringing diverse teams together to help build community, economy and productivity to our valley, I hope to help Northampton navigate any challenges facing us.”
The race in Ward 1 saw two newcomers vying for the open seat after Stan Moulton decided not to run for council again. Nabad defeated Michele Ronco by a 673-577 vote.
Nabad has served as the chair of the Northampton Housing Partnership and told Reminder Publishing in before the election that she plans to prioritize resident involvement on boards and commissions.
“Representation is important for a thriving democracy, and civic engagement is a great way to stay informed about what is happening in our city,” she said.
Ward 2 incumbent City Councilor Deborah Klemer was reelected after defeating challenger Alan Simon in a 543-478 vote. This will be Klemer’s second term as Ward 2 councilor. Leading up to the election, she told Reminder Publishing her top priority is to foster a more positive and respectful atmosphere in the city.
“It is vital that we work together and communicate effectively to achieve our goals. Many constituents have expressed frustration with the negativity, misinformation and unprofessional communication that have created a barrier to effective dialogue,” said Klemer.
Ward 3 incumbent Quaverly Rothenberg fell to Loisel 748-508. Loisel is a former longtime journalist and more recently a spokesperson at the Northwestern District Attorney’s office. She told Reminder Publishing in leadup to this race that she would work on the issues raised repeatedly during her campaign trail.
“Getting our streets and sidewalks in better shape, working to fill empty storefronts downtown, and reducing drama and vitriol in our public discourse to get back to a City Council that works effectively together for the common good,” she said.
Ward 5 saw two candidates face off to fill the newly vacant seat after current Ward 5 Councilor Alex Jarrett chose to not seek reelection. Davis will take his place after securing 787 votes, to opponent Vincent ‘Luke’ Rothello’s 592 votes.
Davis recently retired from 27 years of teaching and is coming to the council after serving two terms on the School Committee.
In Ward 6, incumbent and longtime City Councilor Marianne LaBarge was unseated by challenger Christopher Stratton in a 889-722 tally. Stratton moved to the city in 2020 and told Reminder Publishing before the election that he fell in love with the community.
“I seek to represent you as a councilor who will prioritize schools and city services, keep taxes affordable, look deeply into the issues and examine how each proposal would impact your life, before I cast a vote on it,” said Stratton.
And in Ward 7, incumbent Rachel Maiore was reelected over opponent Susan Timberlake in a 924 to 319 vote. Maiore has served as Ward 7 councilor since 2019.
School Committee
In the three-way race for at-large School Committee, Jewell and Saner Sullivan were the top two vote getters, which means they will occupy the two at large seats that were open. Emily Serafy-Cox, who has served the last six years on the committee as the Ward 3 member, will not serve on the committee after finishing third with 4,250 votes.
Jewell, the top vote getter with 4,550 votes, told Reminder Publishing before the election that she was running out of her love for the city’s schools.
“We are showing young people in our city that they are the powerful changemakers we’ve always taught them about and who we’ve always encouraged them to be,” said Jewell. “I will represent the interests of the students and the folks who care for them, and I will always center the learners in every decision I make. I will work to usher our schools into the future instead of holding them back in the past.”
Sullivan, a product of Northampton Public Schools, told Reminder Publishing before the election that the city “needs to foster a culture in which the School Committee can operate as a forward-thinking body based on respect and collaboration.”
“As a community, we have shared goals for our students, and while funding issues have been a priority for decades, there is so much more we can be looking at, learning from and taking action on to better our schools today,” she said.
The Ward 2 School Committee race saw Weisenfreund defeat Angela Wack by a 532-464 vote. Weisenfreund was appointed to the Ward 2 School Committee seat in January of this year and has now been elected to the position for the first time.
Weisenfreund told Reminder Publishing leading up to the election that she plans to ensure the district fully corrects its failure to meet many mandated services for children with disabilities. She also added she wants to find a better budgeting process to support the schools.
“School budgets are complicated. But in our city, we produce millions of dollars in surplus revenue each year and we have built extraordinary reserves. We can figure this out,” she said.
In Ward 4, incumbent Michael Stein was reelected after being challenged by write-in candidate Megan Wolf.
Other races
All four candidates to be Forbes Library Trustees, Rebekah Anderson, Ann Ruocco, Lolan Sevilla and Frederick Kass, were elected to fill the four open seats.
David Alan Murphy was elected Elector Under the Oliver Smith Will in an unopposed race. And the three candidates for Trustees of Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School, Richard Aquardro, Michael Cahillane and Julie Spencer-Robinson, were all elected.
To view all unofficial results from this year’s election visit northamptonma.gov./755/Elections.
