Recall ballot set in Saugus

SAUGUS – The official ballot for the March 17 recall election is out, and the four sitting selectmen will each be facing fewer challengers than originally expected.Each of the four selectmen subject to recall – Chair Ellen Faiella, Maureen Dever, Paul Allan and Stephen Castinetti – will face two challengers, if the effort to recall them is successful.Four challengers are running for only one seat, while School Committee member Arthur Grabowski is running against all four selectmen.In addition to Grabowski: Jeffrey V. Cicolini is running against Allan, Jennifer E. D?Eon is challenging Dever, Mark D. Mitchell is taking on Castinetti, and Scott A. Brazis is challenging Faiella.Voters must first decide to vote for or against the recall of each of the four selectmen. They then have the option of voting for the candidate of their choice in what amounts to four separate elections.Originally, the challengers were scheduled to run against multiple selectmen – other than Mitchell, who had always planned to challenge only Castinetti – but that plan changed over time.From the beginning, Grabowski planned to run against all four as to not make it personal against one particular selectman.?If voters decide there should be a recall, and it?s entirely up to them, I wanted to have my name out there as a viable candidate,” Grabowski said. “Rather than limit it to one person, I decided to take a shot, and maximize my chances of winning by running for all four slots.”Grabowski has served for six years on the School Committee and two years as a Town Meeting member.Recall candidate D?Eon said although she pulled papers for four spots, she withdrew so that her votes aren?t staggered.?I can only win one seat, and it doesn?t make sense to run for all four,” D?Eon said. “It?s not a popular vote, so my votes would be all over the place. I waited to see where the other people ran.”Like D?Eon, Mitchell said he didn?t want the anti-selectmen votes divided, hence his decision to take on only Castinetti.?I don?t have any relationship with him, so it wasn?t personal,” Mitchell said. “I just had to run against someone.”He said it?s a unique election.?It makes more sense to have the votes go directly to us instead of dividing them among four people,” Mitchell said.Brazis also pulled papers for all four seats, but opted to take on only Faiella.?I?m familiar with the others,” Brazis said. “Some I?ve known for years, while others I?ve met recently. It seemed counter-productive to run for all four.”?The way I look at it, the four seats that are subject to recall are almost like having four separate elections, and I am only running as a candidate in one of them,” Cicolini said. “This is to provide clarity and to maximize the impact of the residents who vote for me.”