2019 Municipal Endorsement Voting Information
If you are eligible to vote, you should receive a separate email from OpaVote containing a link to your ballot for ORS's 2019 municipal endorsements. You may cast your ballot anytime between Thursday, July 25th and Wednesday, July 31st at 11:59pm.
Please make sure to read and follow the instructions for each section before casting your vote. Candidates who receive two-thirds of the votes cast in their contest will be endorsed by ORS.
Eligibility
You are eligible to vote in this endorsement election if you are a Somerville resident who, by the end of the day on July 24th, had either paid the $5 annual ORS membership dues or had requested a waiver of dues on account of financial hardship. If you are eligible to vote but do not see an OpaVote ballot in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you have not received a ballot and you believe this is an error, please email us at ourrevolutionsomerville@gmail.com and we will be glad to assist you.
Steering Committee Recommendations
After reading the questionnaires and watching the forum discussion, the ORS Steering Committee has recommended the endorsement of Marianne Walles for Mayor and of Will Mbah, Bill White, and Mary Jo Rossetti for City Council At Large. Their names will be marked with an asterisk(*).
The Steering Committee decided not to make any recommendations in the uncontested seats for Ward Councilors and School Committee. In the two contested races for School Committee — in Ward 3 and Ward 7 — the Steering Committee decided not to make a recommendation, based on the belief that all candidates are well-qualified for a final endorsement to be decided by the membership.
The final endorsement decision is up to all ORS members. We hope you'll make your voice heard by casting your endorsement ballot and then joining fellow ORS members in campaigning for the ORS-endorsed candidates this summer and fall.
Councilor Stephanie Hirsch May Not Serve Full Term
While incumbent Councilor-At-Large Stephanie Hirsch will appear on the ORS endorsement ballot, she has informed ORS of the following:
"I have decided to be sure constituents and advocates know that, if I’m elected, I am not sure how much of this next term I will serve. Because of trying to juggle the Council work with some of the needs of my family, I haven’t been able to figure out whether or not and how long I can serve, if elected. (I wish I did have a clearer picture of what’s next for me, but unfortunately the election calendar is not lining up with the twists and turns of family obligations.) In terms of my campaigning efforts, I am forgoing accepting any donations. I will, though, continue to do some canvassing, focusing only on households that are unlikely to reach out to elected officials."
