The Concord City Council Shuffle Begins Sept. 6

When Concord City Council candidates start filing to run on Sept. 6, voters are going to see some incumbents shuffling seats in an attempt to secure their positions in November.

Incumbent At-Large City Councilor Dan St. Hilaire has decided not to run citywide and instead, will run for the Ward 10 seat, being vacated by Fred Keach. Keach, it turns out, has decided to run citywide, along with current incumbent Michael DelloIacono, who has also decided to seek re-election. Jennifer Krevotic, who is currently serving in Ward 2, will be redistricted into Ward 3, and after thinking about running citywide or in Ward 3, has decided the latter.

“I believe I have much to offer and you know I am super dedicated!,” Kretovic said in an email. “I work very hard, not only towards my Council duties, but with the various committees I serve on as well.”

Kretovic said the decision was made that more difficult because she could potentially be challenging current Ward 3 Councilor Jan McClure, who hasn’t indicated whether she plans to run or not.

“It is what has made the decision all the more difficult,” she said, about a potential challenge against McClure. “I want to continue serving on the Council, but no matter which option I look at, Ward 3 or At-Large, I will be running against a fellow Councilor or Councilors.”

McClure managed to fend off a challenge two years ago by Kris MacNeil. Before that, she hadn’t been challenged since being elected by write-in vote in 2003.

In the at-large race, it is unknown whether DelloIacono and Keach will have competition for the two four-year seats. Historically, the at-large seats tend to be competitive but two years ago, incumbents Mark Coen and Steve Shurtleff ran unopposed. In 2009, St. Hilaire easily won re-election with DelloIacono besting Jim Baer by a little more than 100 votes as well as Rick Cibotti. In 2007, Shurtleff and Coen beat Merwyn Bagan, Al Foy, and Stacey Catucci. Three candidates ran in 2003 and seven ran in 2005.

For municipal election cycles, most Ward seats are uncontested, despite being the easiest races to run. 

In 2009, only one of the 10 Ward seats had a contested race. In 2003 and 2007, two were contested. In 2005 and 2011, three Wards had contested races.

In the mayor’s race, Jim Bouley has indicated that he will run for another two-year seat. He’s been mayor since winning the seat in 2007. While there have been rumors that a potential candidate could emerge in the mayor’s race, no candidates have come forward yet.

Voter turnout for city elections tends to be in the 11 to 15 percent range.

Three open school board seats are also up for grabs with candidates signing up for the new district seat configuration on Friday morning. A single member will be selected from Wards 1, 2, 3, and 4 (Board District A); Ward 5, 6, and 7 (Board District B); and Ward 8, 9, and 10 (Board District C).

So far, only Jennifer Patterson has indicated that she will run for the District B seat. Incumbents Bill Glahn, who also lives in District B, and Tara Reardon, who lives in District C, have not responded to inquiries about their future intentions.

Roger Phillips, the clerk of the Concord School District, said potential candidates can file to run for three district seats starting at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 6, at his office on 104 Pleasant St. at Pine Street. The filing period will be open from that time until 5 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 16. Election Day is on Nov. 5.

For more information about school board seats, contact Phillips at 603-225-2767, or email roger-at-phillipslawoffice.com.

For potential city council candidates, City Clerk Janice Bonenfant said her office will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. for candidate filings. On Sept. 16, the office will accept candidate filings until 5 p.m.

The filing requirement for mayor and councilors is $5 or a collection of signatures due by Sept. 20.

For more information about the candidate filings, call the city clerk's office at 603-225-8500.