No Candidates for Two Mattapoisett School Committee Seats

Something weird this way comes in Mattapoisett's upcoming election. No candidates are running for two vacant school committee seats.

Lately, it seems voters have stayed away from local elections, but this year, it is the candidates that will sit it out.

Incumbent Mattapoisett School Committee members Karin Burrows and Shannon Finning-Kwoka decided not to seek re-election this year. Burrows told Sippican Week that the recent birth of her second child in September has placed demands upon her time, and she is "ready to open the seat for someone who has more time to devote to the position."

Finning-Kwoka has had no public comment that I am aware of about her decision not to seek re-election.

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Town bylaws permit candidates to stage a write-in campaign. That means someone could be elected to the school committee after receiving only a small handful of write-in votes.

The Mattapoisett School Committee is comprised of five members, with one member serving as a representative of the Old Rochester Regional School Committee. Rochester and Marion also have representatives on the regional school committee.

Wednesday is the final day Mattapoisett residents can register to vote in the annual town election. Town Hall will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. for last-minute voter registration.

The annual town election is Tuesday, May 17, 2022, at the Old Hammondtown School. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.

The ballot, as reported by the Town Clerk on April 7, 2022, is posted on the Mattapoisett Town of Mattapoisett website.