SALEM ― Mayor Kimberley Driscoll will remain in her seat for another term after defeating Stephen Dibble, by a 6,459-4,511 margin, in Tuesday night’s election.
Driscoll, who received 58.9 percent of the vote, spoke to a large crowd at the Hawthorne Hotel after her victory.
“I want to thank the voters of Salem,” she said. “Today you said yes, and voted to a Salem that says yes and welcomes everyone, yes to a Salem that believes everyone has the right to a roof over their head, yes to Salem having a world-class education starting with preschool, and yes to a Salem where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.”
Driscoll, Salem’s first female mayor, was first elected in 2005. Driscoll’s stated priorities going into this election were COVID-19 pandemic recovery, making the city welcoming and accessible to all residents, improving the city’s public schools, creating more affordable housing, improving transportation options, and climate resilience.
Driscoll’s opponent, Dibble, had been Ward 7 councilor since 2015.
In total, there was a turnout of 34.4 percent at the polls. This was much greater than this year’s preliminary election, which only saw a turnout of 22 percent. The 2019 election, which did not have a mayoral race, saw a 26-percent turnout, and in the 2017 election Driscoll and competitor Paul Prevey saw a 41-percent turnout.
In the wards, only three incumbent councilors sought to retain their seats for another term; all three were successful.
Ward 1 incumbent Robert McCarthy was reelected after defeating competitor Maribel Steadman 834-506, resulting in a 62-percent win.
Ward 2 saw Caroline Watson-Felt trounce competitor James Zavaglia with 1,435 votes to 397 ― a 78.3 percent win.
Ward 3 incumbent Patricia Morsillo won out over opponent David Freni, 718-590, resulting in a 55-percent victory.
Ward 4 was a close race, forcing a recount; the original count resulted in a one-vote difference. Lev McClain was elected after the recount, beating competitor Stephanie Rodriguez. The final count was not available as of press time.
Ward 5 saw Jeff Cohen (953) defeat his competitor Stephen Kapantais (447) in a 68.1-percent win.
Ward 6 incumbent Megan Riccardi was reelected after beating her competitor George O’Brien with 1,169 votes to 466; it was a 71.5-percent victory.
Ward 7 saw Andrew Varela defeat competitor Francis Riggieri with 658 votes to 583 votes, resulting in a 53-percent victory.
Councilor-at-large winners were incumbents Conrad Prosniewski with 5,707, Domingo Dominguez with 4,903 votes, Ty Hapworth with 4,382 votes, and Alice Merkl with 5,348 votes.
The School Committee winners were incumbents Amanda Campbell (5,422 votes), Beth Anne Cornell (5,191 votes), and Manny Cruz (5,150 votes), and newcomers Armerys Suarez (2,356 votes) and Zachary Hall (2,128 votes).
