RUMFORD — Six people are running for two seats on the Board of Selectmen, including two incumbents.

Friday at 4 p.m. was the deadline to return nomination papers to Town Clerk Beth Bellegarde’s office.

Incumbent Selectmen Jeff Sterling and Jolene Lovejoy are seeking re-election, and candidates James Windover, Mark Belanger, Candice Casey and Patrick Ryan are also vying for the two three-year positions.

Steve Dyment and Richard Scagliola also took out nomination papers for the selectmen positions, but did not return the papers by the deadline, Bellegarde said.

Last week, Sterling and Lovejoy took Windover and Belanger to task over their filing of nomination papers on April 11 before Windover and Belanger could do the same.

The two incumbents read prepared statements at the April 17 selectmen’s meeting refuting Windover’s Facebook claim that they and Casey “must have had a sleepover at the Town Hall, because me and Mark were standing outside the door waiting for it to be unlocked so we could go into the Town Office, and they were already in the clerk’s office.”

Sterling and Lovejoy said that they and Casey had simply entered the Municipal Building’s rear entrance from River Street, which is unlocked on weekday mornings, allowing town employees to enter the building for work. The building’s door fronting Congress Street remains locked until municipal offices open for business.

Sterling and Lovejoy said none of them, including Casey, entered the clerk’s office until after Bellegarde opened it.

There is a reason why candidates want to be first in line to file nomination papers, for which they have to get a minimum of 50 signatures of town residents who are registered voters and actually live in Rumford.

According to Maine Municipal Association staff attorney Ellerbe P. Cole, Maine law [30-A MRSA §2528(4)(A)(2)] allows a voter’s signature to count only on one nomination paper for each vacancy to be filled in secret ballot elections.

If a voter signs a nomination paper for more than one candidate in a single-seat race, the candidate for whom the signature counts is the candidate who is the first to file a paper bearing the voter’s signature.

Bellegarde said Friday afternoon that people can only sign two nomination petitions for June’s selectmen’s race, because there are two offices up for election. Signing a third or more nomination petitions would render that signature invalid.

But that didn’t happen on April 11, she said. There were no signatures discounted for that reason. Some are discounted because the signers aren’t registered voters or don’t live in Rumford.

Bellegarde said all of the candidates had more than enough valid signatures, and most candidates in Rumford elections usually do.

Those who don’t have the minimum number of signatures, because some are invalidated, are told to go out and collect more signatures and then return their nomination papers.

Also seeking re-election are Bellegarde and Tax Collector Tom Bourret.

Bellegarde said no one took out papers to run for one three-year term on either the RSU 10 School Board or the Rumford Board of Assessors.

Secret ballot elections will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on June 10 at the American Legion Hall.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com

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