AUBURN — Richard Gleason handily defeated Ron Potvin, 5,411 to 2,423, to claim the mayor’s chair for the next two years.

“The difference, I think, as that I campaigned and he didn’t,” Gleason said Tuesday night. “I ran scared. I’ve always been told in businesses you need to run like you’re scared, and I did.”

Gleason claimed 69 percent of the vote to Potvin’s 31 percent.

“I did everything I could to meet people,” Gleason said. “I had volunteers and signs and ads in the papers and I spoke to groups and knocked on doors. I think if you run for something, you need to get out and campaign and let people meet you.”

Potvin conceded that he ran a very different campaign. He didn’t put out any campaign signs and devoted most of his efforts to meeting with groups.

Potvin said he could have been hurt by heavy turnout from ballot initiatives.

“If there are a lot of people coming out for state issues, did they even vote for a candidate locally?” Potvin said. “Does seeing a Dick Gleason sign change their minds? That’s kind of what it comes down to when you get a lot of people voting that don’t follow local politics.”

Voters at the polls Tuesday backed up that idea.

“I just think Mr. Gleason put more effort into the campaign,” said Jennifer Mercier, 30, of High St. “I saw more of his signs and heard more about him.”

Voters also turned out to put two former city councilors back in office. Former Ward 5 Councilor Belinda Gerry claimed one at-large seat, with 3,529 votes. Former Ward 3 Councilor Eric Samson claimed the second, with 3,104 votes.

Bob Mennealy, a city councilor since 2003, lost his at-large seat, with 2,557 votes.

In Auburn’s Ward 1, voters returned Mike Farrell to office. Farrell claimed 988 votes to challenger Richard Francouer’s 506.

Farrell said he had a feisty encounter with one voter at the polls, who challenged his votes on the city budget.

“She said, ‘You voted to take money away from the schools,'” Farrell said. “What I did was return money back to the taxpayers. I asked if her child was better educated at $25 million than at $20 million, and said it has to stop someplace.” 

[email protected]