PARIS — Town Manager Dawn Noyes has endorsed Chairman Rusty Brackett for reelection to the Select Board in next week’s election, drawing criticism from Brackett’s opponent.
Walter Perry, who is seeking election for the first time, is upset about the endorsement letter, which was written on town stationery. He said it was written during working hours and on town equipment. He claims that is against the law.
A spokesman from the Maine Municipal Association could not be reached Thursday afternoon to verify his claim.
Noyes wrote of Brackett, “He has been an active member of the Select Board as well as part of many town events,” Noyes wrote in her letter of endorsement. “Rusty has been part of this community for most of his life. Rusty asks questions and thinks things through before making decisions. He cares about what the town of Paris is doing and where it is going. Rusty is a strong person for the Paris Select Board.”
Reached at the Town Office on Thursday afternoon, Noyes declined to comment on the endorsement letter.
“It shows a little bias from the people that run the election,” said Perry, a teacher and chairman of the science department at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School.
Brackett, who was first elected in 2016, is seeking his third term on the board. He is the only selectman up for election this year and Noyes hopes to keep the board intact.
“The current board works very well together,” she wrote. “They each bring something to the table. They watch out for the residents and what is best for the town. We don’t want to change that.”
Perry sent an email to Noyes expressing his frustration with the endorsement on town stationery, which was shared on social media.
“I know that Rusty Brackett is favored by the town office,” Perry said in an email to Noyes. “However, it is for the voters to decide who will be on the board. The official letter of endorsement from the town office is concerning. To be professional, we must remain impartial. Not sure how we can have a fair election when this clear bias is so obvious.
“For the town manager to give one side an official endorsement by the town directly for them to use in their campaign, during working hours and on a computer that is town property, with the authority of official town letterhead, this is unacceptable,” he added.
Voters will go to the polls Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the fire station on Western Avenue to cast ballots for officers.
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