Last call for Candidates

Town Hall will remain open until 5 p.m. today, giving candidates their final chance to obtain nomination papers; School Committee Chair Vincent Serino eyes a seat on the Board of Selectmen in Nov. 4 town election

By Mark E. Vogler

SAUGUS – For those residents aspiring for public office in the Nov. 4 town election who haven’t made it public yet, today (Friday, Sept. 12) is their last chance to obtain nomination papers from the Town Clerk’s Office. Town Hall normally closes at noon on Fridays. But Town Clerk Ellen Schena said her office will remain open until 5 p.m. to accommodate those people who have been procrastinating on the first step to becoming potential candidates. Then, they have until 5 p.m. next Tuesday (Sept. 16) to submit their nomination papers to the Board of Registrars for the certification of signatures.

Among the latest candidates to pull nomination papers is School Committee Chair Vincent Serino, who plans to run for a seat on the Board of Selectmen. “I think I’ve done a lot with the School Committee,” said Serino, who is finishing up his second consecutive two-year term.

“I got a lot of people asking me to run. At the end of the day, you have to ask yourself whether you can make a difference. I get a little frustrated with the infighting in town. But I think I can make a difference. And I’m looking forward to the new challenge,” he said.

Serino, 58, is a lifelong Saugus resident. With his wife, Julie, they have raised four children – all who attended Saugus Public Schools and graduated from Saugus High School and went on to receive college degrees.

“I’m a fourth generation Saugonian who grew up in East Saugus on Serino Way, and I care a lot about the town,” Serino said in a telephone interview this week.

“I know it’s going to be a challenge. But, I think I can help out with decisions to make the town better. Hopefully, people think I’m the right person for the job,” he said.

Serino topped the field of seven candidates in the 2023 School Committee race, drawing 2,482 votes – beating Thomas R. Whittredge by just 20 votes. Whittredge, the top vote-getter in the 2019 and 2021 School Committee races, beat Serino by 69 votes in the 2021 town election. But Whittredge resigned from the committee in early 2022 to spend more time with his children after he had lost his wife to cancer. As the second highest vote-getter who was vice chair at the time, Serino wound up serving the final 18 months as School Committee chair during the 2021-23 term.

In an interview this week, Whittredge said he hadn’t decided whether to run for reelection on the School Committee. “I’m still not sure,” Whittredge told The Saugus Advocate on Tuesday.

“It’s extremely frustrating to have cuts every year because of contractual obligations. It directly affects the kids and families of the district, including my own,” he said.

Meanwhile, Stephanie Mastrocola was the only incumbent School Committee member to pull nomination papers in pursuit of being reelected to a second two-year term. She was the third-place finisher in the 2023 election, receiving 2,232 votes. Incumbent School Committee members Ryan P. Fisher and John S. Hatch had not obtained nomination papers by deadline of this week’s Saugus Advocate. They have until this afternoon to decide whether they want to run for another term.

So far, there are seven candidates who have obtained nomination papers for the School Committee. They are incumbent member Mastrocola, former School Committee members Arthur Grabowski and Joseph “Dennis” Gould and challengers Roberto F. Bruzzese, Brian Joseph Doherty, Andrew T. Finn and Shannon McCarthy.

Former School Committee Chair Serino is the ninth candidate to pull nomination papers for the Board of Selectmen. Four of the five incumbent Board members – Board Chair Debra Panetta, Vice Board Chair Jeffrey Cicolini (he took out papers last week) and selectmen Anthony Cogliano and Michael Serino (Vincent Serino’s second cousin) – are seeking reelection. Selectman Corinne Riley said earlier this year that she will not seek a fourth two-year term. Former Selectman Jennifer Elaine D’Eon is among the five challenges. Also running for selectman are Precinct 1 Town Meeting Member Stacey Marie Herman-Dorant, Precinct 7 Town Meeting Member Frank V. Federico and former Selectman candidate Sandro Pansini Souza, who finished last in the seven-candidate race two years ago.

Incumbent Housing Authority Member Bill Stewart – who beat out two challengers to keep his seat four years ago – must again run in at least a three-candidate race to keep his seat. Precinct 8 Town Meeting Member Kristi Talagan, who ran for the Housing Authority four years ago and lost, pulled papers to run for a seat on the Housing Authority again. Precinct 7 Town Meeting Member John Chipouras is also challenging Stewart.

In addition to the races for the Board of Selectmen, the School Committee and the Housing Authority, there are 50 seats to be decided for two-year terms on Town Meeting – five seats for each of the town’s 10 precincts. Ten certified signatures of registered town voters are required for candidates seeking a seat on Town Meeting. Candidates for the Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Housing Authority must obtain 50 certified signatures of registered voters to qualify for a spot on the election ballot.