Matt Fee, Brooke Mohr Win Select Board Race
Jason Graziadei •
Newcomer Brooke Mohr and incumbent Matt Fee won the two seats up for grabs on the Select Board on Tuesday defeating Henry Sanford and Cliff Williams in Nantucket's 2022 Annual Town Election.
For Mohr, who claimed victory in her very first bid for elected office, the results were an affirmation that the issues she staked her candidacy on - specifically affordable housing - resonated with island voters.
"I think I just ran on who I am and what's been important to me and the work I've been doing in the community," Mohr said Tuesday night at the polls, shortly after the results were announced. "I'm really grateful that that resonated with the voters because I think the issues that matter to me, matter to the community. We're definitely at a crossroads on a lot of issues and I think making sure everyone is seen and heard and that all constituencies are represented is part of what I believe in really strongly."
Fee, the owner of Something Natural, won his fifth term on the Select Board. True to form, he ran a subdued campaign - no signs, no ads - and still won handily, receiving the most votes of any candidate in the Select Board race by a wide margin.
Fee wasn't at the polls to hear the results. Nor was he at a campaign party popping champagne. Reached by phone Tuesday night, Fee was at home in his pajamas getting ready for work the next day.
"I speak up for what I think is right, Fee said. "That's what resonates more than anything. I hope I can improve things a little on the island and bring a perspective that will help us do better and find a good path. It's never boring."
The other two candidates - Cliff Williams making his 10th bid for a seat on the board and Henry Sanford running for the first time - finished a distant third and fourth, respectively.
Fee: 1,587 ✅
Mohr: 1,298 ✅
Sanford: 626
Williams: 638
Planning Board
In the other contested races, Barry Rector defeated write-in candidate Emmy Kilvert in a tight contest for a seat on the Planning Board. Kilvert posted a strong showing despite not having her name on the ballot, but it was not enough to defeat the incumbent Rector.
Rector: 1,067 ✅
Kilvert: 913
Historic District Commission
Abby Camp and Stephen Welch claimed victory in the Historic District Commission race, topping longtime member John McLaughlin, now 88, who was unseated after decades of service on the commission.
Camp: 1,438 ✅
McLaughlin: 910
Welch: 1,358 ✅
Town Clerk
Town Clerk Nancy Holmes soundly defeated challenger Robert Waickowski to win another term serving in the Town & County Building on Broad Street.
Holmes: 2,042 ✅
Waickowski: 220
Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board:
In the race for three seats on the Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board, Stephen Payer and Scott Anderson - the only names on the ballot, were elected, while write-in candidate Dave Bossi claimed the third seat, edging out Dan Pronk:
Scott Anderson 1,600 ✅
Dave Bossi 173 ✅
Stephen Payer 1,252 ✅
Dan Pronk 115
The overall turnout for the election was 25.3 percent, as 2,374 of Nantucket's 9,376 registered voters showed up at the polls. That was an increase over last year's 17.8 percent turnout.