And following his arrival, State Representative Mitch Bolinsky made a speech saying, “Everyone in this room worked so hard.” Separately, Legislative Council member Ryan Knapp commented, “This was a town effort,” to get these results.Īs the crowd began to dwindle, those who remained saw First Selectman Dan Rosenthal arrive to visit and congratulate candidates. Seeing that so many Republicans were being voted in, Brestovansky said it looked like an unprecedented victory was in store for the local political party. They really wanted it and they acted on it.”Īfter 10:20 pm, votes were still coming in. It was a blessing for the town to see that… They were the hardest working group I’ve witnessed. When an unfavorable result popped up on the screen, a disappointed crowd rallied together and someone encouragingly said, “We still have District 2.”īill Brimmer told The Bee, “This group of candidates were in it all the way. When Capeci would add another number to the chart they would yell excitedly, “Something moved!” She told The Newtown Bee, “It’s good to see Republicans win this year.”Īs the night wore on, children in attendance sat on the ground and looked up at the results coming in. Throughout the night the crowd of candidates, supporters, and GOP faithful was in good spirits, which were intensified whenever Capeci made his way to the podium to add more votes to a marker board tracking each ballot line.īarbara O’Connor has been on the Republican Town Committee since 1956, and was a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals for 20 years.
Some very unfortunate things in town took place, so it took courage and forthrightness to persevere through it… It takes a lot of guts to put yourself out there. The candidates from the other side did as well. While he mentioned he would always like to see more voter turnout and hopes that one day there will be 100% voter turnout, he was encouraged to see that those who did vote were supporting many of the local Republican candidates.įor those who won, Brestovansky expressed his congratulations and said, “I think our candidates had a good campaign and communicated well. “We have a lot of committee members, friends, family, voters, and supporters with us here tonight,” he said. Soon after, Republican Town Committee Chair Dennis Brestovansky told The Newtown Bee there was a “great turnout” at the gathering. Incumbent Town Clerk Debbie Halstead also won another term against current council member Jordana Bloom, who will be transitioning off the legislative panel along with fellow Democrats Alison Plante and Chris Smith.Īnd the Board of Education picked up three GOP members with Don Ramsey, Jennifer Larkin, and Janet Kuzma all winning seats.Įarly in the evening, before results began coming in, Republicans were gathering as Fox News played quietly at the Newtown Community Center’s community room, which became an impromptu GOP Headquarters.Īt 9 pm, Selectman Jeff Capeci announced, “We’ve got three Republicans on the Legislative Council,” which elicited an eruption of applause. Several races featured candidates seeking to transition from other elected posts, with Board of Finance members Christopher Gardener and Matt Mihalcik picking up seats on the Legislative Council alongside current Selectman Jeff Capeci, who also won a council seat.Ĭurrent Board of Education Chair Michelle Embree Ku also ran for and won a council seat, while former school board chairman and current finance board Chairman Keith Alexander came up short in his race for a council seat in District 2. Several other underticket positions were likewise filled by unopposed candidates, including three Edmond Town Hall Board of Managers slots, two on the Zoning Board of Appeals, and one Planning & Zoning Commission seat. And after more than 20 years of planning and false starts, Newtown voters endorsed an expansive renovation of the HVAC system at Hawley Elementary School by a wide margin.įewer than 35 out of 100 registered Newtown voters turned out to the polls on Election Day or filed absentee ballots in advance to seat dozens of public officials - many newcomers - who will lead the community over the next couple of years or more.īy the time polls closed, the registrars reported 6,717 registered residents or taxpayers qualified to vote on just the spending authorization for Hawley School had cast ballots, representing 34.68% of Newtown’s 19,371 eligible voters.įirst Selectman Dan Rosenthal clinched re-election with no opponent, albeit under a new national political affiliation with the SAM (Serve America Movement) Party, as did the two Board of Selectmen candidates, incumbent Democrat Maureen Crick Owen and newcomer GOP candidate Ed Schierloh. Republicans regained seats - and in a number of races, took back majorities on local boards and commissions - after all the votes were counted November 2.
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