RUTLAND — Incumbent Mayor David Allaire cruised to victory in his bid for a third two-year term, besting half a dozen challengers.
Also, a 17-person race for six seats on the city’s Board of Aldermen ended in a tie for the final spot on the panel, setting up a recount. If the recount doesn’t settle the question, a coin flip may be the method for eventually finalizing the race, according to city officials.
Allaire got 1,356 votes in Tuesday’s Town Meeting Day balloting; Alderman Christopher Ettori finished second with 1,018 votes.
Rounding out the remaining five candidates in the field were Alderman Sam Gorruso with 561 votes; Matthew Godnick Seager with 481 votes; Kathleen Krevetski with 63 votes; Marge Johnston with 16 votes; and her son, Kam Johnston, with 10 votes.
“I think that people for the most part are pleased that we are dealing with the Covid crisis in a responsible manner, keeping people safe,” Allaire said. “The voters are very smart; they sent a good message as far as what we’re doing at City Hall. I’m very pleased about that.”
Allaire said he doesn’t expect any immediate “big” changes in running the city government.
“Big changes? I’m not sure people voted for that,” he said. “We might do things a little bit differently but I guess that’s a problem I’ll face tomorrow.”
Ettori did not seek reelection to his seat on the city Board of Aldermen as he ran for mayor. He said he hasn’t ruled out running for elected office again in Rutland.
“I have a passion for Rutland and a passion for doing things in Rutland,” he said. “I’m going to be looking for the opportunities where I can make a difference. At this point, I don’t know what that holds.”
He also congratulated Allaire on his victory.
“I wish the mayor good luck,” Ettori said. “The city needs leadership and I hope with the board of aldermen that he will be able to take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of us.”
In the campaign, Allaire stressed the need to have experience in the mayor’s office as the city strives to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic.
He had served 19 years on the city’s Board of Aldermen before being elected mayor in 2017. In that race, Allaire easily bested longtime mayor Christoper Louras in a contest that divided the community over refugee resettlement.
Two years later, in 2019, Allaire more than doubled his opponent’s votes in winning reelection.
The most recent campaign finance forms that the candidates filed with the state show Seager led the field in fundraising, with $10,691; Ettori raised $7,105; Krevetski $3,679; Allaire $3,050; and Gorruso $2,120. Neither Johnston filed campaign finance reports. Reports need to be filed only by candidates raising or spending $500 or more.
All the filings are as of Feb. 26 except Allaire’s; his filing is for Feb. 20, with no Feb. 26 filing listed on the Secretary of State’s campaign finance website.
Among Allaire’s largest contributors were Vermont Rail Systems at $1,000; Mark Foley, a Rutland developer, at $400; Joseph Giancola, also a Rutland developer, at $200; and David Wolk, former Rutland school superintendent and president of Castleton University, at $200.
City board race
In addition to the packed ballot for mayor, voters had to sort through a field of 17 candidates for six two-year seats on the city’s Board of Aldermen. The race was even more wide open because three of the six incumbents on the 11-member board did not seek re-election.
The top five vote getters were Devon Neary with 1,583; incumbent Thomas DePoy with 1,429; incumbent William Gillam with 1,340; Carrie Savage with 1,315 votes; and Mike Doenges with 1,156 votes.
The race for the sixth and final seat ended in a dead heat, with John Atwood and Thomas Franco each receiving 1,122 votes, setting up a likely recount. Both Atwood and Franco were part of a progressive group of candidates who campaigned together running under the “Rutland Forward” banner.
Incumbent Rebecca Mattis finished 10th and out of the running with 965 votes.
“I’m really grateful to the people who came out and supported me and supported Thomas,” Atwood said Tuesday night. “I’m happy that I did well; I’m happy that Thomas did well. I think that either way it’s a win for Rutland.”
Franco echoed Atwood’s comments. He said he expected that, with such a large field, the race would end up being tight.
“I am surprised that it was a tie specifically, but I think it just goes to show how much every single vote counts,” Franco said. “I am proud of the outcome of tonight.”
In other municipal races:
- Mary Markowski won reelection to a two-year term as city treasurer, easily topping two challengers.
- Katie Burke Langlois handily won the city assessor’s post in a seven-person field. She will take over from Barry Keefe, the longtime city assessor who did not run for reelection.
All money items on the ballot also passed, including the municipal and school budgets.
Earlier in the day, Tony Romeo, clerk at the Ward 3 voting site, said voter turnout had been strong.
“It started off real slow, I think because of the cold weather, but it’s been steady ever since,” he said. “There are a lot of people running, I think that has a lot to do with all the people coming out; there’s a lot of choices for people.”
Oluwandare Sowunmi, 22, said after he voted Tuesday that he backed a slate of progressive candidates running under the “Rutland Forward” banner. He also said he voted for Ettori for mayor.
“I’m just looking for some change within the community, for social justice and racial justice,” said Sowunmi, a Castleton University senior who plans to work as a police officer upon graduation.
“I really like this community. I came here for school, and I decided I’m going to stay,” Sowunmi said. “I just thought I might as well come out and vote and make change in the community that I am a part of.”
Kayla Ploof, 28, said that, as a city taxpayer, she saw voting as a responsibility.
“There were a lot of choices,” she said of the candidate-full city ballot after she voted.
Ploof said she voted for Seager for mayor, referring to him as a younger candidate who could bring fresh ideas to the job.
Casey Battles, 31, said he also voted for Seager, and saw him as part of the younger generation stepping up to help bring about change in Rutland.
“If you wanted a change in the city,” Battles said, “this year was the time to make that change.”
Kit Lane, 76, said her vote in the mayor’s race went to Ettori.
“I think probably Dave Allaire has done a good job; I just heard good things about Chris,” she said of Ettori. “It’s no one thing.”
Joan Bradley, 76, speaking as she walked toward the polling location, said she typically votes a straight Republican ticket but hadn’t yet made up her mind on which mayoral candidate would get her support.
“I’ll have to decide that when I get in there,” she said.
