By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — Let the campaigning begin!
The April 8 Town Election ballot was finalized on Tuesday, Feb. 18 when the deadline to pull and return nomination papers at the Town Clerk’s Office took place.
A three-candidate race for School Committee headlines the Town Election.
The rematch of the April 2024 Town Election features School Committee Chair Kristen Grieco Elworthy, School Committee Vice Chair Jenny Sheehan and Winchester Drive resident Kimberly Baker Donahue running for two seats on the school board that both have three-year terms. Elworthy and Sheehan were elected to one-year terms on the School Committee last year.
There will not be a Board of Library Trustees race for the second straight year, as former Planning Board Co-Chair Alan Dresios did not return the nomination papers he pulled on Jan. 31 to the Town Clerk’s Office by the Feb. 18 deadline. Center Village resident Karin Round and Canterbury Road resident Stephanie Slate are both running unopposed for three-year terms on the Board of Library Trustees. Round and Slate will be succeeding Library Trustees Faith Honer-Coakley and Rich Mazzola, who both decided not to run for re-election.
Select Board Chair Dick Dalton is running for a fourth three-year term.
Planning Board member Ed Champy is looking to serve a second five-year term.
Town Moderator Steve Walsh is running for a second one-year term.
Board of Assessors member Richard O’Neil Jr. is looking to serve another three-year term.
Housing Authority Board of Commissioners member John Nunziato is running for a second five-year term.
The last day for candidates to have their name removed from the municipal ballot is Thursday, March 6 at 5 p.m.
Town Clerk Amanda Haggstrom stated in the candidates’ guide that office hopefuls must follow the state’s campaign finance law.
“State law requires an accounting of all money received or spent in the course of a political campaign,” Haggstrom wrote. “Candidates are required to submit regular campaign finance reports and to comply with the campaign finance laws and procedures. It is the responsibility of all those participating in political campaign financing in Massachusetts to become knowledgeable with the provisions of the campaign finance law and its regulations. Violations of the law carry serious penalties of fines, imprisonment or both.”
Haggstrom stated in the candidates’ guide that the deadline for office hopefuls to submit their pre-election campaign finance report is Monday, March 31 at 4:30 p.m. The deadline to turn in the post-election campaign finance report is Thursday, May 8 at 4:30 p.m.
The last day to register to vote in the April Town Election is Friday, March 29 at 5 p.m. The last day to apply for an absentee ballot is Tuesday, April 1.
Haggstrom informed the Villager that residents will be able to vote-by-mail for the Town Election. If residents want to vote-by-mail, they should visit https://www.lynnfieldma.gov/282/Vote-by-Mail-Absentee-Early-Voting-Infor for more information.
“Anyone wishing to vote-by-mail in the Town Election must turn in a complete vote-by-mail application to the Town Clerk’s Office,” said Haggstrom.
For more information about the April Town Election, residents can visit https://www.town.lynnfield.ma.us/town-clerk/pages/running-office-lynnfield.