WESTFIELD – David A. Flaherty withdrew from the Ward 6 City Council race Tuesday, citing the cost to taxpayers in having to conduct a preliminary election in September to narrow that field to two candidates for the November election.
Flaherty had submitted nominations papers for both the At-large and for the Ward 6 City Council races. The deadline for withdrawing from a race is at 5 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 27, but Flaherty submitted a letter withdrawing from the ward campaign early Tuesday afternoon.
“My purpose in taking out nomination papers for Ward 6, after Councilor Crean decided not to run for re-election, was to ensure that the seat did not go to a write-in or unopposed candidate,” Flaherty said in a statement.
“As of today, there are two other candidates running for the Ward 6 City Council seat, and I’m comfortable that the voters of Ward 6 will choose the best candidate to represent them. I am also quite mindful of the budget and do not want the city to have to pay for a preliminary election for this one race,” Flaherty said. “I’ve been honored to serve as a City Councilor for 6 years, and I’m thankful for the broad support I receive from the community. I look forward to working with the rest of the elected officials and city employees in the years ahead to help make Westfield a better place to live.”
Flaherty, had he chosen to withdraw from the At-large campaign, would have triggered a preliminary election in Ward 6 at a cost of between $5,000 and $6,000 because two members of the Planning Board are also seeking that council seat.
The current Ward 6 Councilor, Christopher Crean, did not submit nomination papers for the fall election, leaving that seat open. Cheryl L. Crowe, a member of the Planning Board and president of the Hampton Ponds Association, and William J. Onyski, vice-chairman of the Planning Board had both submitted nomination papers for that post.
Flaherty is now entering a crowded field of candidates for the At-large post with 14 candidates seeking one of the seven seats. That field not only includes five incumbents seeking reelection, but two former councilors seeking to regain a seat.
The At-large incumbents are: Dan Allie, Brent B. Bean II, Cindy Harris, Flaherty and Matthew T. VanHeynigen. Daniel M. Knapik, who is not seeking reelection as mayor and who served on the council as the Ward 2 councilor is joined by former At-large Councilor John J. Beltrandi III in seeking to return to the City Council.
The At-large field also includes seven other candidates, several of whom have been on the November ballot in the past, including Carl Vincent, a Planning Board member, Muneeb Moon Mahmood, Rudolph Musterait, Steve Dondley, a member of the Cable Television Commission, Mark Butler, Kevin P. Medeiros and Richard S. Holcomb.
