Election Day in Chicopee brings out the voters, more in some wards than others
CHICOPEE — By mid-afternoon on a blustery Election Day, several hundred voters had turned up in Chicopee's Ward 1 polling place at the Edward J. Bellamy Middle School, voting officials said.
"It's been a very steady turnout," said Keith Czerwiec, polling warden of Ward 1A. As of about 2:30 p.m., the ward had seen over 600 voters. "And everything has been running smoothly."
Outside the school, supporters of Frank LaFlamme, John Paquette Jr. and Joel McAuliffe , candidates for city councilor at large, and Rajesh "Raj" Sanghvi , candidate for city collector, waved at cars and held up large signs.
LaFlamme, who is president of the council, is up for reelection. McAuliffe previously served as the Ward 1 councilor for a stretch of six years.
While standing next to his wife at the polling place, Paquette Jr., a newcomer, told a reporter that he was "optimistic" about the turnout Tuesday.
LaFlamme, McAuliffe and Paquette Jr. are among seven candidates for four open at-large positions.
At around 3:20 p.m., Keith Rattell, city clerk, said he and his assistant clerk had just pulled into the Senior Center, Ward 4's polling place, to check in on how the day was going.
"So far, it's as I've expected," he said over the phone. "We've seen a broad range in turnout ... between 4 percent and 14 percent."
A Chicopee voter casts a ballot at the Knights of Columbus building on Memorial Drive. (Douglas Hook / The Republican)Douglas Hook
Rattell said he expects the total average turnout across the city to end at about 15%.
"Because there's no mayoral race this year, it doesn't really surprise me that there is less interest," he said.
The clerk said there had been no irregularities by the middle of the afternoon — only that the weather was very windy.
"Everyone's all bundled up, and they're still out here supporting their candidates," he said.
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