Signs point to change in Peabody election

PEABODY – With next Friday looming as the deadline for municipal election candidates to take out nomination papers, contests for School Committee and the Ward 1 City Council seats are looming large on the municipal election landscape.Candidates have until Aug. 11 to return nomination papers for the Sept. 29 preliminary election.The preliminary will set the stage for the Nov. 3 final election, where voters will go to the polls to pick a mayor, five councilors-at-large and a councilor for each of the city’s six wards.They will also elect three School Committee members, as well as two Municipal Light Commissioners and four Peabody Institute Library trustees.Mayor Edward Bettencourt, to date, is seeking reelection without an opponent, and at-large councilors Anne Manning-Martin, David Gravel, Thomas Gould, Thomas Walsh and Michael Garabedian are also seeking re-election.Light Commission members Robert Wheatley and Thomas Paras are running for re-election, along with library trustees Richard Shruhan, Wesley Merrill and Margaret Tierney.School Committeewoman Brandi Carpenter, to date, is the sole incumbent running for re-election to the committee. To date, seven candidates are also running for committee seats, including Peabody schools graduate Andrew Arnotis and Joseph Amico, who is billing himself as an “experienced educator.”Self-described community activist Michel Bonbon is also running for School Committee along with Carlton Street resident Travis Wojcik, who kicked off his campaign a month ago. Pianist and business executive Neil Papamechail also took out papers along with West Peabody attorney John Olimpio and cyclist and Welch School teacher Brian Addesa.The Ward 1 contest has attracted community preservation advocate Jon Turco and Anne Quinn, who has library board trustee experience. Emerson Avenue resident Brian Barrett, who has city zoning board experience, has also pulled nomination papers for the Ward 1 race.Two School Committee members, Edward Charest and Jarrod Hochman, pulled nomination papers to run for the Ward 4 council seat following 28-year Councilor Robert Driscoll’s decision not to run for reelection.Ward 2 Councilor Peter McGinn, Ward 3 Councilor James Moutsoulas, Ward 5 Councilor Joel Saslaw and Ward 6 Councilor Barry Sinewitz are running for reelection without challengers emerging to date to oppose them.