By Bill Gilman
The 2010 Municipal Election season will officially begin on Jan. 20 with the opening of the nomination period in both Derry and Londonderry.
Major changes are possible on the local political landscape, particularly in Derry, where three seats are up for grabs on the school committee and three more will be on the ballot for town council.
To this point, the only candidate to publicly announce his candidacy is Doug Newell, who has stated he plans to run for the at-large council seat in Derry presently held by Council President Rick Metts, who has not yet announced if he will seek re-election. Newell was defeated by Brad Benson in a bid for an at-large seat in 2008.
Also up for re-election to the Derry Council are Brian Chirichiello and Brent Carney, neither of whom has yet decided whether he will run or not.
Incumbents up for re-election to the Derry School Committee are Chairman Brenda Willis, Ken Linehan and Kevin Gordon. Both Willis and Gordon are completing their ninth years on the committee. Gordon said he has not yet decided whether or not to seek a fourth term, while Willis and Linehan could not be reached for comment.
In Londonderry, Ben Parker is up for re-election to the school board, while Kathy Wagner and Brian Farmer are up for re-election to the town council. Wagner said she is still deciding whether or not to run again, while Parker and Farmer could not be reached as of press time.
Numerous other individual and board positions are available in both Londonderry and Derry.
The nomination process runs from Jan. 20 through Jan. 29 in both towns.
To place your name on the ballot for any positions available in the Londonderry School District, stop by the school district office at 268C Mammoth Rd, Londonderry, to fill out the nomination form.
To place your name on the ballot for any town positions available in Londonderry, fill out a nomination form available in the town clerk's office at Town Hall on Mammoth Road.
To place your name on the ballot for any town positions available in Derry, fill out an nomination form available in the town clerk's office in Town Hall on Manning Street.
To place your name on the ballot for any positions available in the Derry Cooperative School District, fill out a nomination form available in the school district office at 18 South Main St. in Derry.
