HOULTON, Maine — A strong turnout of voters showed up at the polls Tuesday to cast their ballots for local and state candidates at the Gentle Memorial Building.
Houlton Town Clerk Khylee Wampler said participation in voting was steady throughout the day, as evidenced by the total number of ballots cast. Roughly 2,051 ballots were returned for Houlton. There are approximately 3,800 registered voters in the town.
For the Houlton Town Council, Jane Torres received 1,426 votes, while incumbent Eileen McLaughlin received 1,348 votes. Both were elected to three-year terms. Incumbent Dennis Harmon, who was not listed on the ballot, but ran as a write-in candidate, received 18 votes.
For the RSU 29 school board, Fred Grant and Ellen Askren were re-elected to three-year terms with 1,040 votes and 953 votes, respectively. Others receiving votes were A. John Hyman (875) and Robert Nuccio (384).
A one-year seat was also up for grabs on the school board. Michelle Henderson (730 votes) narrowly beat out David Carmichael (722 votes) to win the seat. Gary Lovell received 297 votes.
For the Houlton Water Company Board of Directors, Josh McLaughlin (1,701) and Isaac Brown (1,339) were both elected to three-year terms. For the Cary Library Board of Trustees, Iva Sussman was elected to a five-year term with 1,715 votes.
Eight seats on the town’s Board of Budget Review had no candidates this year. The Houlton Town Council will seek out people to fill those positions in the coming weeks, as the board starts its review of the 2023 municipal budget.
