WATERVILLE — Colby College associate professor Winifred Tate was elected 4-2 Tuesday night to fill the Ward 6 City Council seat vacated by Dana Bushee, a Democrat who resigned Jan. 4.
Tate, 46, defeated candidates Lauren LePage, daughter of Gov. Paul LePage, and George Weber, a military veteran, both of whom had submitted letters of interest to the city for the Ward 6 seat, introduced themselves Tuesday and were interviewed in open session. LePage received two votes; Weber received no votes.
Councilors voted Tuesday by secret ballot, as required by the city charter, which mandates a majority of four votes to elect a candidate.
Tate, of Bartlett Street, works in the Department of Anthropology at Colby. She told councilors Tuesday that she would be honored to serve residents of Ward 6. She said she has lived in Waterville nine years and is a tenured professor who was raised to value public service, she said.
“Waterville has welcomed us and it’s been a wonderful place to raise my family,” she said.
Tate wrote in her letter of interest to the city that, as a taxpayer and parent of two children in public schools, she is deeply concerned about how to balance the needs of all community members and manage the city’s resources.
Tate’s children attend Albert S. Hall and George J. Mitchell elementary schools and take part in the Quarry Road ski program and hockey. She said she has been part of a parents’ ad hoc advisory board for Common Street Arts and at Colby, and she is a member of the Working Group on Civic Engagement. She also actively promotes an inclusive vision for Colby’s downtown expansion, she said.
Tate’s research focuses on U.S. drug policy. She has done extensive research on the opiate crisis as well as marijuana regulation policy around the country.
She said she wants to promote evidence-based policies to address the challenges of illegal drug addiction and regulation.
The council last week confirmed Mayor Nick Isgro’s appointment of LePage to fill a vacant seat on the Planning Board formerly held by Planning Board Chairman Nick Champagne, who was elected to the City Council in November. She is in her final year at University of Maine School of Law and works as executive director of Maine People Before Politics, an advocacy group.
Amy Calder — 861-9247
Twitter: @AmyCalder17
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