Letters to the editor: Moderator’s letter questioned

Clarification: In a letter dated Dec. 6 on the subject of voting in the upcoming special election, Ripley Hastings was writing as a Weston resident, not in his capacity as Town Moderator.

Moderator puts ‘cart before the horse’ on special election issue

I appreciate Town Moderator Rip Hastings’ letter on Dec. 5 encouraging voter participation in the Jan.13 Special Election on our Select Board expansion. His dedication to civic engagement is commendable, and his concern about low turnout in local elections is well-founded.

However, his call for potential candidates to “raise your hand now”, six months before the election, raises serious concerns given the context.

The moderator served on the Governance Study Committee – a Select Board-appointed group that opposed expansion – though he appropriately abstained from the committee’s public vote on the expansion question. Now, he’s advocating that voters should gauge candidate interest before deciding on expansion and these optics are troubling. Is this staying neutral or is it gathering data to bolster an anti-expansion argument?

This approach also puts the cart before the horse. The question before voters isn’t ‘do we currently have two people interested in running?’ but rather ‘does our town government function better with a three-member or five-member board?’ Town Meeting decisively voted twice that five members would serve Weston better based on governance principles: broader representation, reduced workload, diverse perspectives, and improved debate leading to better decisions.

For what it’s worth, I’ve already heard about multiple highly-experienced community members interested in running in May. But more fundamentally, we don’t restructure government based on a December snapshot of candidate interest as the strongest candidates often emerge once structures are in place.

I hope everyone turns out to vote on Jan. 13 and makes their decision based on what structure best serves our community, not on unfounded concerns about candidate interest. Town Meeting voted twice for expansion based on sound reasoning and governance principles, and I’m confident qualified, committed residents will step forward to serve Weston, just as they always have.

Rachel Stewart, Sudbury Road

• Letter to the editor: Before we vote on Select Board expansion

Moderator should remain neutral on Select Board vote

I was surprised and disappointed to read the letter from our Town Moderator (signed in his official capacity) urging residents to “LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE RUNNING” for a seat on the Select Board, and suggesting that our votes on whether to expand the board from three to five should depend on whether prospective candidates “raise [their] hand now.” This is backwards.

In January, we’re voting on a straightforward question: Should Weston have a three-member or five-member Select Board? Voters should evaluate the question based on what will best serve our community’s needs. Is Mr. Hastings equating the merits of a structural governance question with the number of people who jump up to declare their candidacies months before the positions even exist? Asking them to commit publicly now, and then using their silence as a referendum on the ballot question itself, puts odd pressure on the whole process. This is not how elections work.

Our Town Moderator is expected to remain neutral and above politics. Attempting to influence a ballot outcome based on the level of “competition” is inconsistent with that impartial role and risks creating the appearance of putting his thumb on the scale.

Let’s vote in January to expand the Select Board from three to five because our town needs a larger board to deal with the growing demands, expand voter representation, bring in more diverse perspectives, and give our Select Board members the ability to work together between meetings on the complicated and crucial issues facing Weston.

Once we expand the board and the lawful nomination period opens, residents can decide whether to run based on their own interests and qualifications. That’s how elections work.

Rochelle Nemrow, Beaver Road