PORTLAND — Voters next week will elect two Portland City Council members and three school board members and weigh in on six city referendum questions.
On the Nov. 3 ballot are an at-large, District 4 and District 5 seat for both the City Council and Portland Board of Education. None of the incumbents are seeking re-election.
The at-large City Council race features Ronald Gan, April Fournier, Laura Kelley and Justin Costa, who is seeking that position rather than another term as the District 4 representative. Looking to replace Costa are Rosemary Mahoney and Andrew Zarro.
Four candidates are running to be the next District 5 city councilor: Kenneth Capron, John Coyne, Mark Dion and Kathryn Sykes.
For school board, Nyalat Billiew, Stacey Hang and Yusuf Yusuf are running for an at-large seat, while Aura Russell-Bedder and Christopher Vail are vying for the District 4 seat and Anthony Emerson and Jeffrey Irish for the District 5 seat.
Also seeking seeking office are William Schaeffer, Sarah Rafferty, Peter Eckel and Frederick Somers, who are all running unopposed for seats on the Peaks Island Council and Kenneth Levinsky and Charles Shattuck-Heidorn, who are battling for a 5-year seat on the Portland Water District Board of Trustees.
Portland voters will also be voting in three new state legislators as Richard Farnsworth, Erik Jorgenson and Matt Moonan are termed out of office. Looking to replace Farnsworth as the District 37 representative is Grayson Lookner, who won the Democratic primary. Green Independent John Safarik is mounting a write-in campaign for that seat. Democrats Samuel Zager and Barbara Wood are not facing competition to become the next representatives of District 41 and District 38 respectfully. Likewise, Edward Crockett is not facing competition for another term as the District 43 representative, nor are Representatives Michael Brennan (District 36), Michael Sylvester (District 39) and Rachel Talbot Ross (District 40). Incumbent District 42 representative Benjamin Collings is facing competition from Republican Sue Abercrombie and Green Independent Carolyn Silvius.
State senators Heather Sanborn (Senate District 28) and Benjamin Chipman (Senate District 27) are also running unopposed for additional terms in Augusta.
There are six local referendum questions on the ballot, the first five of which were put forth by People First Portland. The questions ask voters to:
• Incrementally increase minimum wage in the city over the next three years.
• Prohibit the use of facial surveillance technology.
• Restrict short-term rentals to owner-occupied buildings.
• Stabilize rent increases for tenants.
• Reduce the distance between marijuana establishments and remove the current cap.
• Make sure buildings receiving $50,000 or more in public funding are built using the latest in environmental standards, increase inclusionary zoning for affordable housing and require the city to monitor fossil fuel use in municipal buildings.
City leaders are expecting historic levels of absentee voting. As of Friday, Oct. 23, the city had received, 20,313, or close to 70% of the 29,282 absentee ballots issued. At the July 14 election, close to 15,000 people voted absentee.
The City Clerk’s temporary office in the Merrill Auditorium lobby will be open until 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29 for absentee voting and voter registration. The last day to vote absentee in person is Friday, Oct. 30. For in-person voting, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Much like at the July 14 election, poll locations will look a little different due to COVID-19. Voting booths and queueing lines have been spread out and election workers will be behind plexiglass barriers.
Masks are required for all in-person voting.
For more information on the election or to find your polling place, visit www.portlandmaine.gov/325/Elections-Voting.
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