NS voters reject charter change to eliminate elected administrator

NORTH SMITHFIELD – Local voters went with change in Tuesday election, putting in some new faces on the Town Council, but again declining by a large margin to make the town’s elected Town Administrator a Town Council-appointed town employee.

Town Administrator Gary S. Ezovski was elected to another twoyear term while running unopposed on the ballot.

Town Council President John A. Beauregard lost his seat on the Council while coming up with the lowest vote tally of the six council candidates on the ballot.

Former School Committee member Paul Vadenais, the chairman of the charter review commission proposing the charter changes on the ballot, took first place in the vote tally for five council seats with a total of 2,772 votes.

Another member of the charter commission and a council incumbent Teresa Bartomioli, came in second with 2,681 votes. Council newcomer Douglas B. Osier was third with 2,556, and was followed by council incumbents Paul Zwolenski with 2,526, and Claire Vallieres O’Hara with 2,334 votes for the council’s fifth seat.

Beauregard, who had run into opposition after passage of a council resolution requesting town departments not buy Nike products over the company’s support of controversial NFL player Colin Kaepernick, collected 2,136 votes while losing his seat. Beauregard had called for a vote rescinding the resolution a week after it was approved, acknowledging local opposition.

The Secretary of State office also listed 534 write-in votes in the contest but did not identify who collected them. Another political newcomer, Megan Staples ran a write in campaign for Council.

In the race by three candidates for two available seats on the School Committee, William J. Connell, a former member, collecting 2,336, votes, and Paul M. Jones, a current member, collecting 1,970 voters, were elected to the panel. Frances R. Johannis, also a member, collected 1,891 votes while not gaining a seat.

Although keeping their elected town administrator by a vote tally of 3,091 to 1,547, voters did approve other charter changes on the ballot altering the make-up of the school committee from 7 to 5, setting term limits of no more than 8 consecutive years and modifying recall provisions. The voters also approved Question 4 which will fund a new water line to a neighborhood long troubled with water problems.