With the June 11 election less than a week away, New Gloucester residents who haven’t voted yet can look forward to multiple matters on multiple ballots.
What will voters be considering? Candidates for Select Board, School Board and Water District; the MSAD 15 budget referendum validation vote; primaries for candidates for the Maine Legislature, the U.S. House and Senate, and Cumberland County Register of Probate, and proposed changes to New Gloucester’s zoning ordinance.
Here’s a preview for the June 11 election, including what’s on which ballots:
In-person voting will take place Tuesday, June 11, 2024, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the New Gloucester Fire Station, 611 Lewiston Road. If you’re not yet a registered voter in New Gloucester, you can register at the polls on June 11. Find details about what paperwork you’ll need at this link.
Absentee voting is already under way. Absentee ballots will be available at the Town Office until Thursday, June 6 at 4 p.m. This election, absentee ballot requests and returns have been light, says Deputy Clerk Sharlene Myers, with fewer than 100 so far.
The deadline for returning completed ballots is 8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 11. They can be placed in the ballot drop box in front of Town Hall by 8 p.m. or brought to the Fire Station during in-person voting hours, ending at 8 p.m.
Registered voters who are not enrolled in a party can once again choose which party’s primary to vote in. Learn more about Maine’s new semi-open primaries here.
What’s on the ballots:
— New Gloucester municipal and MSAD 15 seats. Find a sample ballot at this link. Two seats on the Select Board are open; Peter Bragdon and Stephen Hathorne are on the ballot. Two seats on the School Board are also open: Adam Copp and Theresa Lacadie are on the ballot. Read Select Board and School Board candidate profiles here and here.
Residents in the Upper Village area will also vote for a New Gloucester Water District trustee. One seat is open; Cleo Werner is on the ballot.
— MSAD 15 budget referendum vote. District school budgets are adopted through a multi-step process that includes review, discussion, revision and, ultimately, a vote by school board members, followed by two successive votes by District voters.
At the first, the District’s town meeting/budget validation meeting on May 16, voters approved and adopted article-by-article, the $33 million FY25 budget on the warrant, as proposed by the school board. That validation now goes to a ballot referendum vote in both towns on June 11. Find the sample ballot here.
Find information about the FY25 school budget at this link and in the MSAD 15 Budget Message at this link. For an informative Q & A about the MSAD 15 budget with Superintendent Dr. Craig King, watch a video interview at this link by the Town of Gray’s Community Television Advisory Committee, which solicited questions from residents.
— New Gloucester zoning ordinance amendments. Three sets of revisions to the Town’s zoning ordinance, including amendments intended to bring New Gloucester into compliance with LD 2003, a statewide housing initiative, were approved at the annual Town Meeting in May. Now the ordinance changes go to a ballot vote, as required by the Town’s charter. Find background on the amendments at this link and the sample ballot here.
Primaries for Maine Legislature, U.S. House and Senate races, Cumberland County Register of Probate. Find the Democratic primary ballot at this link and the Republican primary ballot at this link.
— For Maine House District 104, Amy Arata is on the Republican ballot. Joshua James Pietrowicz is running as a declared write-in candidate. On the Democratic House 104 ballot, Colleen Strickler is unopposed.
— In the primary for Maine Senate District 20, Republican Bruce Bickford and Democrat Bettyann Sheats are unopposed. (Dustin Ward, running as an independent, does not face a primary.)
— In the Republican primary for the First District Congressional seat, Andrew Piantidosi and Ronald Russell are on the ballot. On the Democratic ballot, Chellie Pingree is unopposed.
— In the primary for U.S. Senate, Republican Demi Kouzounas and Democrat David Allen Costello are running unopposed. (Angus King, running as an independent, does not face a primary.)
— In the primary for Cumberland County Register of Probate, Democrat Susan Schwartz and Republican Jerry DeWitt are running unopposed.
Find other election information, including past results, on the Elections page of the Town’s website at this link.
– Joanne Cole
