Potential Candidates: Nomination Papers are Available for Town Offices

Have you ever considered running for elected office in Belmont? 

Well, now's the time!

According to Belmont Town Clerk Ellen Cushman, running for election is simple. Head over to the Town Clerk’s office to pick up nomination papers; have your neighbors and friends sign your papers and submit the signed forms to the Town Clerk by the deadline, which is Feb. 11, 2014 at 5 p.m.  

To be nominated for town-wide office, prospective candidates will need signatures of at least 50 registered voters on the nomination papers. The Town Clerk must certify these signatures so we always suggest obtaining about 20 percent more just to be safe.

In addition to many town-wide offices, 12 representative Town Meeting members are elected for three-year terms from each of eight voting precincts.

To be nominated for Town Meeting, you'll need signatures of at least 25 registered voters of your precinct on the nomination papers. The Town Clerk must certify these signatures so we always suggest obtaining about 20 percent more just to be safe. Some current Town Meeting Members will be asking the voters for re-election but all twelve seats are available in each precinct.

This year, there are also some partial term openings for Town Meeting and one School Committee seat, vacancies created by Members moving or resigning.

The annual Town Meeting takes place in the spring, and typically lasts for six evenings, – customarily Monday and Wednesday – in early May (for non-budget items and bylaws) then early June for the town's budgets. 

Town Meeting makes all of the decisions on budgets and bylaws. Belmont’s government is a representative Town Meeting, which means that only Town Meeting members can vote at Town Meeting, unlike an Open Town Meeting form of government.   

The Town Clerk’s web pages contain quite a bit of information to help make a decision to seek office or feel free to call us at 617-993-2600, or email at  townclerk@belmont-ma.gov 

Here’s the list of offices that will be filled by the April 1, 2014 annual Town Election:

Belmont Annual Election Ballot for April 1, 2014

Town-wide offices on all ballots and the term

• Moderator: single seat, 1 year.

• Board of Selectmen: single seat, 3 years.

• Town Treasurer: single seat, 3 years.

• Board of Assessors: single seat, 3 years.

• Board of Cemetery Commissioners: single seat, 3 years.

• Board of Health: single seat, 3 years.

• Members of the Housing Authority: single seat, 5 years.

• Trustees of the Public Library: two seats, 3 years.

• School Committee: two seats, 3 years; single seat, 1 year. 

Town Meeting Members: all Precincts

Number of candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 1, Vote for 12, 3 years

Nine candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 2, Vote for 12, 3 years

Seven candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 3, Vote for 12, 3 years

Twelve candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 4, Vote for 12, 3 years

Seven candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 4, Vote for 2, 1 year 

No candidates eligible for re-election

• Precinct 5, Vote for 12, 3 years.

Seven candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 5, Vote for two, 2 years.

No candidates eligible for re-election

• Precinct 6, Vote for 12, 3 years

Nine candidates asking for re-election

• Precinct 7, Vote for 12, 3 years

Six candidates asking for re-election

Precinct 7, Vote for one, 1 year

No candidates eligible for re-election

• Precinct 8, Vote for 12, 3 years

Twelve candidates asking for re-election