Lynn teacher tops ticket in Swampscott

SWAMPSCOTT – Ford Elementary School teacher Laura Spathanas and Naomi Dreeben may have made history in their election to the two seats on the Board of Selectmen Tuesday.Serving Selectman Glenn Kessler said he can?t remember the last time two women were simultaneously serving on the board, and he wondered if there ever had been.Spathanas also could not recall a board with two women serving. She and Dreeben will be filling the vacancies of former Chairman Jill Sullivan and Vice Chairman Barry Greenfield. Spathanas topped the vote with 1,058 votes out of a total 3,184, with Dreeben earning 786. The third candidate, Raymond Patalano, chairman of the town?s Capital Improvements Committee, lost by a slim margin with 702 votes.Spathanas, a Lynn native who has lived in Swampscott the last 10 years, said though she?s been elected, she will continue reaching out to residents to hear their needs and wishes as she did during her campaign. “I?ve truly come to love this town, and I?m honored to be a part of the town in this way,” she said.Tuesday?s chilly weather didn?t deter Spathanas supporters from holding signs at the high school and First Church Congregational polling centers. Christine Ericson looked more ready for a November election than that of an April one, but she bundled up to stand in front of the church waving to drivers with daughter Kailey and son Michael on Tuesday afternoon. Ericson said Spathanas is a fellow mother at Clarke Elementary School, and she was supporting her because “she is running to make the town a better place for children.”Dreeben could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.The other race in the town election was for the Planning Board. Clinton Bench beat out contender William Travascio, with 756 votes to Travascio?s 558.Only 16 percent of registered voters turned out, a bit lower than Town Clerk Susan Duplin?s prediction of 20 percent. “Town elections usually have a lower turnout,” said Duplin Tuesday afternoon.