Dedham 2012 Election Guide

The candidates, incumbents and issues that will be affecting Dedham and Norfolk County.

As we look to Tuesday's election, Dedham Patch is devoted to bring you the information you need about every race in town. Here's our start on the candidates and issues we'll be covering as the election arrives. Bookmark this page for updates. STATE Massachusetts State Sen. Mike Rush is up for re-election this fall. Rush defeated Westwood resident and candidate Michael Walsh in the 2010 primary and won against Brad Williams in the election that year. Local officials welcomed Rush back to the United States in January after the Senator returned home after serving overseas in Iraq. State Rep. Paul McMurtry (D-Dedham) is running for re-election unopposed this year. Joseph Selvaggi will challenge Rep. Stephen Lynch in November after defeating …

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Roberts Declines Recount in School Committee Election

Dave Roberts served the School Committee for four terms before losing the April 14 election.

  David Roberts informed the Dedham Town Clerk's Office Tuesday that he will not seek a recount in the April 14 School Committee election, a race he lost to Joe Heisler by four votes. With three seats up for grabs, Roberts, Heisler and Kevin Coughlin, who garnered the most votes, entered the race as incumbents. Jennifer Barsamian finished second as a write-in candidate. Roberts said Wednesday morning that he researched the machines used and the laws surrounding a recount, and determined the likelihood of making up four votes was low. "The aspect of a four-vote swing was not a reality," Roberts said in a phone interview with Dedham Patch. The race was uncontested between the three incumbents until April 9 when several parents launched a …

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Week in Review

Week in Review: Dedham Burns, Selectmen Halt School's MOU

A look back at some of the stories we covered this week on Dedham Patch.

  Brush Fire Dies Down After Scorching 20 Acres in Dedham A brush fire near the Manor and Greenlodge caused alarm for many not just in town but across eastern Massachusetts on Thursday. Reports say upward of 100 acres burned, but no injuries were reported and no structures were damaged. Dedham Selectmen Halt School's Conduct Agreement with Cops The Board of Selectmen started a sub-group that will take a look at the proposed memorandum of understanding between the schools and police that call for several changes to the current policy - including enforcement year-round and applying the rules to students in grades six through 12, as opposed to nine through 12. MBTA Solar Project Eyes Spring '13 Commissioning The MBTA released plans to build …

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Town Meeting Election Winners Announced

All 273 seats were open for Town Meeting.

  Dedham Town Clerk released Thursday the Town Meeting members who won a seat in Saturday's election.

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Roberts Weighing Recount Options, 'Disappointed' After Election Loss

Dave Roberts lost Saturday's election by four votes.

  The difference between winning a fifth term on the Dedham School Committee and bringing that career to an end was four votes. And now Dave Roberts, who came in fourth in Saturday's town election, will decide if he will petition Town Clerk Paul Munchbach for a recount of the 1,908 votes. "It's in my thought process right now, but I haven't made a final decision," Roberts said in a phone interview Sunday afternoon. "I need to talk to some close friends about that." Three incumbents - Kevin Coughlin, Joe Heisler and Dave Roberts - looked like shoe-ins for the three open seats for most the election season's seven weeks, but in the final week, a grassroots effort formed to elect Jennifer Barsamian as a write-in candidate. Barsamian finished …

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Five-Day Grassroots Campaign Wins Barsamian School Committee Seat

Jennifer Barsamian ran a successful write-in campaign to pick up one of the three open seats.

  Despite just a five-day write-in campaign, Jennifer Barsamian earned a seat on the Dedham School Committee Saturday night. Barsamian received 784 votes, second most among the four major candidates receiving votes. "I was overwhelmed by the support - this was a community win. This was not about me," Barsamian said Saturday night. "This was about [784] people who came out to voice their desire for some change in the School Committee." Incumbent chairman Kevin Coughlin received 885, the most votes. Joe Heisler picked up 715 votes to take the third and final School Committee seat. Incumbent David Roberts finished four votes behind Heisler with 711. Roberts could challenge the results and petition for a recount within the next 10 days, and he…

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Fred Civian

9:12 pm on Sunday, April 15, 2012

Dan - I realize your perception is that the campaign was "prompted strictly by the redistricting issue." There have been a number of news articles recently that contain statements from various people involved in the campaign - Jen included - where a number of other reasons were given. Anyone reading those articles would quickly understand that the campaign was inspired - if that is the right word…   more ›

No Opposition in Selectmen's Race an 'Honor' for MacDonald

Current chairman Jim MacDonald faces no competition for his seventh term on the board.

  With no opposition on the ballot - and no publicized write-in campaign against him - current chairman Jim MacDonald is ready to win his seventh three-year term on the Board of Selectmen. "It's an honor to run unopposed. I think I do a good job. I'm responsive to people, I listen and I'm fair," MacDonald said. MacDonald, the state's first deputy treasurer, won his first selectmen's race in 1994, and is the senior member of the five-person board. Looking to his next three years, MacDonald said he wants to help develop a strategic budget plan that maps how the town will spend money and collect taxes. "There is more demand than ever to, where we can, be cognizant of the fact that people are still hurting [financially]. Any increase on taxes …

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Write-in Campaign Makes School Committee Election a Race

Days before the April 14 election, parents are driving a grassroots campaign for one of their own.

  Upset by what they call a lack of communication by the School Committee and department, a group of parents on Tuesday began a write-in campaign for Jennifer Barsamian days before voters go to the polls. The town election is Saturday, April 14. Barsamian and other parents were spurred into action following last month's release of elementary school redistricting and passage of a summer conduct policy. Several parents told committee members at two meetings that there wasn't enough notification of the changes or inclusion of parents in the discussion. "The public perception of the School Committee has really taken a beating," said Jessica Porter, who is leading the write-in campaign. "In large part that's because the leadership of the School…

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Uncontested Races Dominate Town Election Ballot

Many candidates are in line to win uncontested races.

  Only two races in April's town election will be contested, with the remaining seven boards and positions left without a challenger. While multiple residents pulled papers that would have created races, several did not return signatures to stay in the election. Board of Selectmen incumbent Jim MacDonald won't face a challenger, and neither will School Committee members Joe Heisler, Kevin Coughlin and David Roberts as that committee looks to fill three seats. Of course, a candidate could pull together a write-in campaign between now and Election Day on April 14. The Library Board of Trustees has one seat open with two candidates: former School Committee member Tracy Driscoll and Marcia Jane Withiam-Wilson. Three residents will battle for …

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