Along with a contested election for first selectman, there could be a real horse race for the Board of Selectmen.
David K. Clune, an unaffiliated voter, has requested a petition from the secretary of the state’s office to be listed as a candidate for the Board of Selectmen on the ballot for the Nov. 3 election.
He will need 14 signatures by Aug. 5 to be considered.
With Selectman Deborah McFadden, a Democrat, running against the Republican nominee Lynn Vanderslice for first selectman and Selectman Michael Kaelin’s term up (he is serving the remainder of Hal Clark’s term) there will be two open seats on the board.
Kaelin is running for a full four-year term, and the Democratic Town Committee (DTC) has nominated Brian Lilly and Gil Bray to run.
Selectmen James Saxe (Republican) and Richard Dubow (Democrat) are not up for re-election. Their terms expire in 2017.
In the town of Wilton’s charter, a minority representation clause dictates that no more than three selectmen with the same affiliation may serve on the board during a given term, including the first selectman.
Therefore, if McFadden wins as first selectman, only one of the DTC’s two slated candidates for selectman will be permitted to serve.
If McFadden loses, the two open seats could be contested by four candidates: Kaelin, Lilly, Bray, and Clune, if he is accepted as a candidate.
Key dates leading up to the election are as follows:
• Nominating petitions must be filed by 4 p.m., Aug. 5.
• Primary petitions must be filed by 4 p.m., Aug. 12.
• A primary, if needed, would be Sept. 16 from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
According to the registrars of voters, there are 11,248 registered voters in Wilton:
• 4,228 Unaffiliated;
• 4,060 Republicans;
• 2,899 Democrats
• 61 Other.
Editor's Note: This story originally reported former superintendent David Clune was the petitioner. The petitioner is David K. Clune. The Bulletin apologizes for the error.