NORTHAMPTON — Voters will see Gina-Louise Sciarra listed first on the Sept. 28 preliminary ballot for mayor after a drawing of names to determine ballot positions on Thursday.
City Clerk Pamela Powers and Assistant Clerk Amy Zielenksi printed the names of 10 candidates for two races — mayor and at-large City Council — on small paper tags and randomly pulled each one from a bingo-style, rotating wooden box at a 5 p.m. City Hall drawing.
The 20-minute ceremony, held in the hall outside the city clerk’s office, was open to the public, but only mayoral candidate Shanna Fishel was in attendance, along with their mother. Fishel’s name was chosen fourth out of five candidates on the preliminary mayor ballot.
In ballot order, the candidates for a four-year term as mayor are Sciarra, Rosechana Gordon, Roy Martin, Fishel and Marc Warner. In ballot order, the candidates for two at-large City Council seats are Michael Quinlan, David Murphy, Marissa Elkins, Jamila Gore and Michelle Serra. City councilors serve two-year terms.
Voters will eliminate three candidates for mayor and one for at-large City Council. The preliminary winners will advance to the general election on Nov. 2.
After the drawing, Fishel, who uses they/them pronouns, said they were glad that they and Gore will be in the fourth position in their respective races. Fishel said the two candidates, who have “similar values,” met while canvassing and signed each other’s nomination papers.
“I think that it’s important to be present when decisions are made, even the order of the ballot, and to see it and mark the event as momentous,” said Fishel. “It’s a historic moment to be on the ballot. I’m running to make a significant change.”
The job of mayor pays $92,500 per year, while the at-large City Council seats come with $9,500 salaries.
The deadline to register to vote in the preliminary election is Sept. 8, and the last day to register for the general election is Oct. 13.
Brian Steele can be reached at bsteele@gazettenet.com.