Somerset voters call for change

SOMERSET - Somerset’s town election on Saturday was a call for change, as challenger Lorne Lawless defeated two-term incumbent David Berube in the race for Selectman.

According to the certified results, Lawless defeated Berube by 113 votes, or 1,041 to 928. Third place candidate Chris Carpenter received 652 votes.

In the tally of Precincts 1-4, Lawless and Berube were neck and neck, separated by only 39 votes. But Precinct 5, which includes the Brayton Point neighborhood, proved to be the deciding factor. Lawless took 274 votes to Berube’s 122 in Precinct 5.

Berube and the entire Board of Selectmen have come under fire in recent months from neighbors of the former Brayton Point power plant, who have complained that the company redeveloping the site is causing major disruptions, including loud noises, traffic hazards and dust.

Lawless, who previously served as selectman from 2007 to 2010, told the Spectator when he took out papers to run that the most important issues facing the town are taxes and the future of the Brayton Point property. He expressed concern about what will be done with the rest of the site and how much traffic that could generate.

Somerset resident Dee Langfield was very vocal in supporting Lawless and talked about the Brayton Point issue as she waited for results on Saturday evening.

“With Brayton Point, Berube did absolutely nothing,” she said, as she happily greeted the news of Lawless’ win on Saturday. “People screamed, talked, went to town meetings.”

She said the residents of Brayton Point were not being heard and no matter what they did to try and fight for change, the former board of selectmen did not cooperate. She said she feels Lawless will do a better job than Berube in resolving the power plant issue.

“He’s for the town, he knows the town and he’s for the people,” she said.

The Board of Selectmen will meet at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 17, and on the agenda is a vote for reorganization, which will determine who is the next Selectmen Chairman.

In the race for School Committee, Shauna Geary and Robert Gaw won the two available seats, with Geary capturing 1,294 votes and Gaw 1, 189 votes. Allen Smith received 1,050 votes and Jessica Machado received 864 votes.

“The issues have significantly changed over the last few months. First and foremost, we have to focus on what the school year looks like and how to get the budget In place to proceed with whatever that may be,” Geary said after her win.

Geary said the most important issues she wants to address are staying focused on the upcoming school year and getting the budget prepared for the return to school. Geary says she stands firm on issues such as building maintenance, developing the special education department, offering more competitive salaries, and implementing social emotional and anti-bullying programs.

When asked about how she approached her campaign, Geary said “I made it a point to constantly stay the course and be positive in my approach.”

Geary also encouraged strong words for her now co-member of the school committee Robert Gaw as she said “He was a stand up candidate and I congratulate him on his positive campaign and well deserved win. I look forward to working with both the current school committee members as well as Robert.”

In the race for Somerset Berkley School Committee, Richard Fenstermaker ran unopposed and captured 1,971 votes. He was a former member of the school committee that oversaw K-12 and was also chairman of the building committee that oversaw construction of Somerset Berkley Regional High School.

In the Planning Board race, incumbent William Raposa Jr. defeated Virgil Pacheco, 1,265 votes to 1,077.

The race for Trustees of the Public Library had only one candidate, Norbert Dionne, who received 1,947 votes. Kim Forbes, a write-in candidate, received 76 votes for the second open spot.

Also re-elected Saturday were Town Clerk Delores Berge, Town Moderator Lucia Casey, water and sewer commissioner Scott O’Brien, library trustee Norbert Dionne, playground and recreation commissioner Maryellen Aspden, and Housing Authority member Christopher Migneault, Town Clerk Dolores Berges, Assessor Michael Correia, and Moderator Lucia Casey is the incumbent.

Voter turnout was 19.7%, compared to 12.2% last year. Voters were greeted with several changes this year, to protect against the spread of coronavirus. Poll workers sprayed each voter’s hands with sanitizer, voting booths were spread at least 6 feet apart, cones indicated where everyone should stand in line to maintain social distancing, new pens were offered to each voter, voters were asked to wear masks and voting booths were sanitized after each use.