The five candidates for Saranac Lake village trustee.

SARANAC LAKE — With the deadline for filing independent petitions for the upcoming village election now passed, the March 19 ballot is set.

Democrat Fred Balzac is not on the ballot, but he is running as a write-in. He had earlier planned to file to run on an independent line, but said he has been busy with work and didn’t have time to circulate the petition.

“I’m still in it to win it,” Balzac said. “I’m going to campaign like I was on the ballot.”

Each of the other four candidates have secured major party nominations — Aurora White and Paul Van Cott for the Democrats and Katie Stiles and Sean Ryan for the Republicans — as well as independent party lines.

White and Van Cott are also running on the independent “Team Saranac Lake” party line. Stiles is running on the “Integrity for Saranac Lake” party line. Ryan is running on the “Sean Ryan for Saranac Lake” party line.

Saranac Lake village Clerk Amanda Hopf said the time to challenge petitions has also passed. She said all their petitions were “way over” the minimum of 100 signatures needed.

White and Van Cott are both registered Democrats. Stiles and Ryan are both not affiliated with any party and registered independently.

There are two open seats on the Saranac Lake Village Board of Trustees on the ballot as incumbents Rich Shapiro and Tom Catillaz are not running for re-election.

On Election Day, March 19, polls will be open from noon to 9 p.m. in the Harrietstown Town Hall auditorium. Hopf said people wishing to vote by absentee ballot can pick up applications at village offices or on the website at tinyurl.com/yc7vkkp9. These applications will need to be returned to the village by March 12 to be issued absentee ballots.

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Forum scheduled

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The Adirondack Daily Enterprise is partnering with Adirondack Voters for Change to hold a candidate forum on March 5 at the Harrietstown Town Hall from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Because Balzac is not on the ballot, he will not be able to participate, but he will be allowed to attend and speak with voters after the forum during an informal post-forum meeting at the town hall.

Balzac said he has a has a point of view that won’t be carried by the other candidates. He’s concerned the other candidates are “aligned” with either the mayor or with the preceding administration.

He said he’s seen other people win as write-in candidates in the region and said write-in candidates are legitimate candidates.

Enterprise Managing Editor Elizabeth Izzo and Kary Johnson of Adirondack Voters for Change will be moderating. Depending on Wi-Fi connectivity, the forum will be streamed on Facebook Live.

Questions will be chosen by newspaper staff from a list submitted by the public and questions will not be revealed to candidates ahead of time. Voters can submit questions by email to news@adirondackdailyenterprise.com before 10 a.m. on March 4, or by mail at 54 Broadway / Saranac Lake, NY / 12983.

According to voter registration data from both Franklin and Essex counties, which each include a portion of Saranac Lake, there are 2,909 total registered voters in Saranac Lake. Of these, 621 are Republicans and 1,341 are Democrats. The rest of the 947 are registered outside of the two major parties.

Around 6.5% of Saranac Lake’s registered Republicans participated in their party’s caucus. Around 10% of Saranac Lake’s registered Democrats participated in their party’s caucus.

The five candidates, for the most part, have the same village issues in mind — the need for more housing, filling downtown storefronts and improving village infrastructure. And they’re all saying they have the chops to do away with the divisiveness and in-fighting they said they’re seeing on the current board.