McKenna in, Jaramillo out in at-large race; lower voter turnout favors incumbents

Revere voters say ‘No’ to repeal recreational marijuana prohibition law

By Barbara Taormina

Voters gave incumbents a vote of confidence in this week’s local election, returning most of them to their seats on the City Council and School Committee. Although turnout was low with only 16 percent of the city’s eligible voters making it to the polls, the message was that residents who did vote seemed to feel positive about the direction of the city. Sitting city councillors took the five at-large seats on the ballot, with Ward 1 Councillor Joanne McKenna being the only new at-large councillor for the upcoming term.

“My mother and father always told me if you want something you work hard enough to get it,” said McKenna, who ran a tireless campaign, knocking on 5,200 doors. “I ran a grassroots campaign, and it was a wonderful experience,” she said, adding that she was well received by voters interested in a broad range of issues.

City Council President Marc Silvestri said he is excited to be back. “I’m looking forward to another two years,” he said.

Councillor-at-Large Michelle Kelley said she was also happy with the results and looking forward to a new term. However, Kelley was reluctant to call the results a vote of confidence since there were only two competitive races on the ballot.

According to the unofficial results, Robert Haas III came in first in the at-large race with 2,484 votes followed by McKenna with 2,342 votes. Next came Anthony Zambuto with 2,145 votes, Michelle Kelley with 2,082 votes and City Council President Marc Silvestri with 2,065 votes. Juan Pablo Jaramillo was the only incumbent not to be returned to the council. The two new challengers, Anthony Parziale and Wayne Rose, came in last, with 1,406 votes for Parziale and 1,040 votes for Rose.

In the wards, five incumbent councillors – Ira Novoselsky, Ward 2, Anthony Cogliandro, Ward 3, Paul Argenzio, Ward 4, Angela Guarino-Sawaya, Ward 5, and Christopher Giannino, Ward 6, – ran unopposed and were reelected to their seats.

Ward 4 Councillor Paul Argenzio is pleased to be returning to the council. However, he feels more can be done to make voting more convenient and turnouts more robust. “That’s why I’m a big fan of mail-in voting,” he said. The election department received 1,700 requests for mail-in ballots.

In the only City Council ward race in this election, James Mercurio defeated Brian Averback with 647 votes to Averback’s total of 243 to take the Ward 1 seat being left open by McKenna. McKenna, who has known Mercurio for years, called him a good guy who will do a good job. She added that she’s there to offer any help if needed, and together they will be the dynamic duo.

This year, the School Committee race was restructured. Voters elected School Committee members to two at-large seats and six ward seats.

John Kingston and Stacey Bronsdon-Rizzo were elected to the two at-large seats, defeating incumbent Frederick Sanella and challenger Ralph DeCicco. Incumbent Jacqueline Monterroso defeated challenger Kathryn Schulte-Grahame by a margin of 453-425 in the Ward 1 School Committee race. Alexander Rhalimi won the Ward 2 School Committee seat, defeating opponent Rafael Feliciano, 189-169 votes. Rhalimi will be the first Moroccan American elected to public office in Revere.

Remaining candidates Anthony Caggiano of Ward 3, Stephen Damiano Jr. in Ward 4, Aisha Milbury-Ellis in Ward 5 and Vanessa Biasella in Ward 6 ran unopposed.

The one surprise in the results was the nonbinding ballot question asking if voters favor a repeal of the prohibition of recreational marijuana facilities. Many city officials have suggested it’s time to repeal the ban and open a new stream of revenue for the city. But voters said no to recreational marijuana with 1,884 voting against a repeal and 1,676 voting in favor of it.

Argenzio noted that there were 1,600 blanks for the ballot question, which may suggest that voters didn’t understand the question. And with only 16 percent of the electorate turning out, Argenzio wasn’t sure if that could be considered a consensus on the question of recreational marijuana.

But City Council President Marc Silvestri had a different reaction to the vote. “The city spoke,” he said.