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Dems, political outsiders take Jay election

Highway supervisor, tax collector won by previous town employees

At the Amos and Julia Ward Theater in Jay, voters cast ballots in a town with many candidates for local office: five for two Jay Town Council seats, four for highway superintendent and two for tax collector. Voters the Enterprise talked to at the poll station cited road quality and filling empty storefronts as the main factors in their voting decisions. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

AuSABLE FORKS — The town of Jay’s elections brought a slew of new faces to public offices including town council, highway superintendent and tax collector after several busy races.

The four winners have said they are excited to improve the town’s roads, economy and taxes.

Town council

Political newcomers Robert Segall and Spencer Reynolds were elected to town council, each hoping to bring change in their own way. Reynolds wants to make changes with how the town’s taxes are assessed, believing the assessor who also assesses three other towns is being spread thin.

Segall has worked to better his community as a citizen for years and hopes his thoughts and energy will spark more action on the council.

Democratic candidate Segall won 444 votes, leading the council election, with Reynolds, running on the Spencer Reynolds party earning 340.

Current Republican Councilman John Sheldrake fell short with 291 votes, Democrat Kate Comegys Mongulla received 240, and Republican incumbent Amy Shalton received 226.

Highway superintendent

Democrat Kevin Zaumetzer took the highway superintendent position with 354 votes, moving from his current deputy superintendent position to see his plans for safer roads in Jay put into action. Zaumetzer has planned work repairing band slides, adding stop signs at blind intersections and fixing tumultuous sidewalks.

Erin Himmel, running on the Fair Deal line, got 283 votes, Republican John “Sleepy” Pulsifer received 113 votes, and William Lincoln, running on the People’s line, got 75.

Tax collector

Susan Richards, a Democrat who won the tax collector position with 489 votes, has experience with the town’s taxes, having developed the warrant for the tax collector for 11 years while working as the town clerk.

Richards hopes to emulate then-tax collector June Taylor, who died in office, leaving many realizing how much they liked the woman who collected their taxes.

Republican Lori Ducharme earned 295 votes.

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