This year’s Town Election follows the Annual Town Meeting by three days on Tuesday, May 6. Polls in the Hildreth Elementary School gymnasium will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. The ballot asks voters to choose among candidates for open seats on four elected boards and to act on two financial questions.
Three candidates are running for two seats on the Select Board: Don Ludwig, Ahmet Corapcioglu, and Eve Wittenberg; Richard Cabelus has withdrawn from the race. Brian Killeen is running for the one open seat on the School Committee, while four candidates will vie for the two open library trustee positions: Stacie Green, Rebecca Brown, Sarah Saleh, and Molly Waring. Two seats are open for the Warner Free Lecture Trust, but Piali De is the sole candidate. Watch for more details in our May 2 election issue.
Ballot Question 1 asks taxpayers to approve a Proposition 2½ tax override and offers voters two choices: Question 1A and Question 1B. Passage of both questions would allow the town to raise $1.37 million more than the limit set by Proposition 2½, enough to pay for the entire $35.1 million omnibus budget recommended by the Select Board and Finance Committee.
If Question 1A passes but 1B fails, the town will need to reduce spending to $34,696,716, enough to allow town departments to continue operating at current levels but forcing the school district to cut staff and find other savings within its budget. If neither 1A nor 1B passes, town departments and the schools will need to reduce spending further to the limit permitted by Proposition 2½: $33,756,877.
Ballot Question 2 is unrelated to the budget but would raise an additional $200,000 from taxpayers. The money would be used to open a new pension savings account to buffer future increases in the cost of employee benefits, which the Finance Department forecasts will rise 10% per year for the foreseeable future. Town Meeting must first pass Article 14 in this year’s warrant to create the new pension and OPEB stabilization fund, and then voters must pass Question 2 at the ballot box to fund it.
A copy of the ballot is available at the town website, harvard-ma.gov. Click Annual Town Meeting & Election> May, 6, 2025 Annual Town Election Sample Ballot.
