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Voters elect Dwyer to Keene justice seat

Barbara Dwyer has won the race for Keene town justice, according to unofficial election results.

Newcomer Chris Daly’s 254 votes on Election Day and during the early voting period gave him a five-vote lead over long-time Keene resident and incumbent Town Justice Dwyer’s 249 votes. The race switched back into Dwyer’s favor this week after the Essex County Board of Elections counted 57 absentee and five affidavit ballots from Keene voters, giving Dwyer 290 votes total, a 17-vote lead over Daly’s 273 votes.

The 17-vote margin requires a hand count of the ballots, according to Essex County Deputy Democratic Commissioner Jennifer Fifield. She said that once the county’s board of elections finishes their canvass of votes, which is expected to wrap up by the end of next week, staff will move on to hand-counting ballots.

Dwyer could not be reached before deadline on Tuesday. In an Enterprise candidate questionnaire last month, Dwyer wrote that she has “lived in and served the town of Keene for 46 years.”

“Societal changes are impacting our community and need to be addressed judiciously at the town court level as needed,” she wrote.

Daly posted about the election results on social media on Monday night, and he deferred to the post when asked for a comment about the election results on Tuesday.

“Thanks to everyone who supported me in the election,” he wrote. “I am honored by how many of you embraced a newcomer to town running for office for the first time. It was a privilege for me to speak with so many folks around town during my campaign. Time to get back to private life.”

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