When Harvard voters go to the polls on Dec. 8 to choose Republican and Democratic candidates to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy, they will also elect a selectman to fill out the term of Leo Blair, who resigned suddenly two weeks ago.
In a unanimous vote Tuesday evening, the Board of Selectmen (BOS) agreed that the cost savings from piggybacking the town election onto the state election justified delaying the selectman election by two to three weeks.
Under the schedule proposed by Town Clerk Janet Vellante, a caucus to nominate candidates will be held at 7 p.m., Sept. 21, at Town Hall. Once chosen, nominees must file election papers by Sept. 24.
Blair, who served on the BOS for nearly 17 months and was the chairman of the Joint Boards of Selectmen at the time of his resignation, stepped down on Aug. 21, citing the demands of his business and family lives as reasons for leaving midway through a term that ends in 2011. The BOS has a full slate during the coming year; each selectman is involved in at least two major 2010 projects, ranging from the upcoming teacher and municipal union negotiations to planning for future use of municipal buildings, and is assigned to numerous town boards or committees as a BOS liaison.
By holding the special election in conjunction with the state primary, the town will save approximately 30 percent of the $3,000 cost of holding a separate election.
Unregistered residents have until Nov. 18 to register by mail or at Town Hall, which will remain open from 8:30 a.m. until 8 p.m. on the 18th.
No potential candidates for Blair’s position have announced their interest publicly.
