Vote! Your Town Depends On It. And On You.

Good morning!

It’s 5 a.m. If you didn’t cast a ballot during the 2 weeks of early voting, you’ve got 14 hours — starting at 6 a.m., running until 8 p.m. — to do so.

Click here (or look below) for your district, and where you vote.

Why should you vote? After all, this is “just” a local election.

In fact, in our daily lives, local elections affect us in ways that state and national elections do not.

Traffic. Saugatuck development. Affordable housing. Schools. Beaches. The mill rate. Bike lanes. Sewer lines. Longshore. Accessory dwelling units. The Police and Fire Departments. Parking. Outdoor dining. Setbacks. Trees. Transit. Blight. Old Mill Grocery. The Cribari Bridge.

Those are just some of the issues that local officials deal with every day.

And if they can’t make decisions about them directly, they can help influence the outcomes with other stakeholders.

On the ballot this year are the Board of Selectpersons; Boards of Education, Finance and Assessment Appeals; Planning & Zoning Commission; Zoning Board of Appeals, and Representative Town Meeting (RTM).

If you’ve ever paid taxes, driven on our streets, been involved in our schools, gone to a beach, needed a permit of some sort to do something — or done, basically, anything else in Westport — the men and women on those boards and commissions have had a direct role in your experiences.

And — except for the 1st selectperson — they are all volunteers.

They give an insane amount of time to serve our town. The least you can do is spend a few minutes selecting who you want to do it.

Here is a sample ballot. It shows one of the 9 RTM districts. NOTE: There are 2 sides to the ballot. Fill out both sides.

For information on all candidates — including those running for RTM in your district — click here; then fill in your address on the right.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: For the Board of Selectpersons, if the Democratic or Republican candidates win, the next highest vote getter for 1st Selectman becomes the 3rd Selectman.

If the Independent Party candidate (on the ballot without a running mate) wins, the other 2 candidates for 1st Selectman become 2nd and 3rd Selectman, in the order of their vote totals.

Also: The Board of Education consists today of 4 Democrats, 2 Republicans and 1 unaffiliated member. Two Democrats and the unaffiliated member are in the midst of their 4-year terms, and are not up for re-election.

On the ballot this year are 3 Democrats (1 party-endorsed incumbent, 2 petitioning candidates) and 4 Republicans (all party-endorsed; 1 is an incumbent). In addition, a Republican is running as a write-in candidate.

By Town Charter, the Board of Education can have only a bare majority (4 members) of one party on the 7-member board. That means that only 2 of the 3 Democrats could be seated. If Democrats are the top 3 vote-getters, the Republican with the next highest vote total after the Republican leader would be seated.

To read the Board of Selectpersons’ candidates’ most recent “Where We Stand” responses to “06880” questions, click here. Then scroll to the bottom for their previous 4 responses.

To read the Board of Education candidates’ most recent “Where We Stand” responses to “06880” questions, click here. Then scroll to the bottom for their previous 4 responses.

To read the Planning & Zoning Commission candidates’ most recent “Where We Stand” responses to “06880” questions, click here. Then scroll to the bottom for their previous 4 responses.