UPDATE, 11:15 p.m. — We have preliminary totals from the Registrars of Voters, with news that that Nicola Davies will join her fellow Democrats Deb Low and Pam Ely as members of the Board of Education. Davies with 2,708 votes was trailed by Jess Christ (R) at 2,438 and Jared Martin (Unaffiliated/R Ballot) at 2,409.
Here’s how the rest of the races turned out:
UPDATE 10:20 P.M.
UPDATE — 10:20 p.m.: As of now we only have in-person vote totals. These are preliminary, unofficial results, based on numbers collected at each polling precinct as posted by the moderators at each location.
We’re waiting for the Registrars of Voters to release the unofficial tallies that will include the absentee ballot results. As of about 5 p.m., the registrars reported over 700 absentee ballots had been received by the town clerk.
This could change the way some of these races look, and as soon as those numbers are released, we’ll update this story. But for now, below are the preliminary unofficial results based only on in-person votes cast today at Wilton’s three polling places. We’ve put the leaders in bold font.
RACE IN-PERSON SUBTOTAL ABSENTEE/ Elec. Day Registration TOTAL OVERALL (will change with absentee count) BOARD OF SELECTMEN: (TOP 2) Bas Nabulsi (D) 2235 2235 Keith Denning (D) 1906 1906 Kim Healy (R) 2673 2673 Blank 2225 2225 Write-in 11 11 0 0 BOARD OF FINANCE — Full Term: (TOP 3) Sandra Arkell (D) 2219 2219 Stewart Koenigsberg (R) 2606 2606 Matt Raimondi (R) 2628 2628 Monty Du (R) 2432 2432 Blank 3668 3668 Write-in 22 22 0 0 BOARD OF FINANCE — 2-yr: (TOP 1) Frank Bria (D) 1945 1945 Rich Santosky (R) 2359 2359 Blank 219 219 Write-in 2 2 BOARD OF EDUCATION: (TOP 3) Nicola Davies (D) 2212 2212 Deborah Low (D) 2403 2403 Pam Ely (D) 2356 2356 Jared Martin (Unaff./R ballot) 2174 2174 Jess Christ (R) 2199 2199 Blank 2215 2215 Write-in 16 16 BOARD OF ASSESSMENT APPEALS: (TOP 1) Bob Wallace (Unaff./D ballot) 1946 1946 Chris Gardner (R) 2400 2400 Blank 178 178 Write-in 1 1 0 0 PLANNING & ZONING: (TOP 5) (ALL) Eric Fanwick (D) 2275 2275 Ken Hoffman (D) 2294 2294 Christopher Pagliaro (R) 2684 2684 Jill Warren (R) 2684 2684 Chris Wilson (R) 2621 2621 Blank 10027 10027 Write-in 40 40 ZBA: (TOP 2) Jaclyn Coleman (D) 2189 2189 Tom Gunther (D) 2044 2044 Justin Anderson 2419 2419 Blank 2381 2381 Write-in 17 17 ZBA ALTERNATE: (TOP 2) (empty) Tara Pagano (Unaff./R ballot) 2763 2763 Blank 6248 6248 Write-in 39 39 0 0 CONSTABLE: (TOP 5) Bo Mitchell (D) 1982 1982 Ernie Ricco (D) 1955 1955 Dick Ziegler (D) 1900 1900 Lianne Griswold Acosta-Rua (R) 2284 2284 Lisa Pojano (R) 2180 2180 Peter Wrampe (R) 2104 2104 Blank 1163 1163 Write-in 7 7 0 0
UPDATE — 8 P.M.: Polls have closed in Wilton and voting has ended, although there was some late breaking excitement and/or disruption at District 2/Cider Mill. A fire alarm started going off around 7:45 p.m., forcing poll workers and voters outside — with the voting machine!
Voting continued outside and anyone who arrived before 8 p.m. was allowed to vote. After the Wilton Fire Department showed up and cleared it as a false alarm, people were allowed to re-enter the building. [Photos: Emily Johnson]
UPDATE — 5:30 P.M.: “There’s definite interest in this election,” according to Registrar of Voters Karen Birck. She told GOOD Morning Wilton that as of 5 p.m., there had been 3,367 voters at Wilton’s three polling precincts. That in-person count represents 26.8% of Wilton’s eligible voters.
Considering that there are over 700 absentee ballots, and three more hours of voting left to go, it appears that Birck’s characterization of interest level in Election 2021 is on point.
Here’s how it compares to past municipal elections:
- 2019: 39.5% turnout (4,880 voters) — First Selectman race was on ballot
- 2017: 33% turnout (4,095 voters)
- 2015: 38.5% turnout (total unavailable) — First Selectman race was on ballot
ORIGINAL STORY — 3:45 P.M.: Wilton voters have headed to the polls for an election that’s gained quite a lot of attention. Anecdotal reports of steady voter turnout have been confirmed by Wilton Registrar of Voters Karen Birck, who reported that as of 1 p.m., there had been 2,096 votes cast at the polls, 18 election day newly-registered voters, plus more than 700 absentee ballots turned in.
“The polling turnout at one o’clock was 16.7%, which is better than last year’s Annual Town Meeting,” Birck said, adding, “The turnout has been very steady.”
GOOD Morning Wilton will bring you preliminary reports as soon as we have unofficial polling place totals shortly after polls close at 8 p.m. We’ll be live, here, as well as on our GMW Facebook page and on our Vimeo channel. And we’ll continue to bring you the latest as updated results are released through the night.