Election 2023: New Canaan Hub [UPDATED]

[Election results can be found here.]

Update 4 p.m.

More than one-third of New Canaan electors had cast ballots in this year’s local election with just four hours of voting remaining (see table below).

Giacomo Landi, an unaffiliated candidate for a four-year term on the Board of Education, said he was “feeling good” when NewCanaanite.com interviewed him outside the polling place at New Canaan High School on Tuesday. 

“It’s great to be out, seeing all these people voting, even despite the weather with a little rain this morning,” Landi said. “It’s a lot of fun.”

Two Republican candidates for the BOE—incumbent Hugo Alves, seeking a two-year BOE term, and Lara Kelly, seeking a four-year term—agreed that foot traffic was busy on Tuesday morning.

“I’m feeling great,” Kelly said. “We have a really great turnout which has been awesome to see this early in the morning, and we hope it continues.”

Alves said that Election Day is his favorite time of the campaign “not just because it’s over but because we get to see everybody, and just hopefully bring it home.”

Update 12 p.m.

Voters at midday appeared to be on track to approach overall turnout from 2021 (see table below). 

Matt Campbell, a Republican running for the Board of Education, said from outside the polling place at Saxe Middle School that he’s “feeling good” about the day.

“There’s a lot of turnout so we’re optimistic,” Campbell said. “We feel that people are coming out to cast their votes. Seems like there’s a lot of enthusiasm.”

Matt Wexler, also a GOPer seeking a four-year term on the school board, said in an email that those he’s greeting at the polls are showing enthusiasm “for us and our message.”

“Lots of people noting that they are more interested and focused on schools given what’s happening nationally,” he said. “Very exciting to see so many people focused on local elections and is a true testament to the people of this town.”

Meanwhile, Democrat Josh Kaye, who is seeking a two-year BOE seat, said outside the polling place at New Canaan High School that he and fellow candidates are “feeling good.”

“There’s been a lot of good energy so far,” he told NewCanaanite.com. “Voters seem excited and I’m hopeful.”

Lauren Connolly Nussbaum, who is running for a four-year term on the Board of Ed, said, “New Canaanites have really been following the race and we’re excited about that. And I think that Josh and Brendan and I have left it all on the field.”

She referred to BOE two-term incumbent and former chair Brendan Hayes, who is seeking re-election to a four-year term.

Update 10 a.m.

New Canaan voters headed to the polls before dawn on a damp, overcast Election Day morning.

Motorists pulling into the polling places at Saxe Middle School and New Canaan High School were met with an array of lawn signs and tables set up by local political committees greeting voters.

“Turnout is amazing,” Amy Murphy Carroll, Democratic candidate for first selectwoman, told NewCanaanite.com outside NCHS. “A lot of encouragement. We’re going to go forward in a positive way.”

She’s facing Republican Dionna Carlson in a race for the town government’s top job. 

Carlson also said she was “excited” to see how many people were showing up to cast their ballots.

“Looks to be a good, steady turnout today,” she said from the Republicans’ table outside NCHS.

Steve Karl, the Republican chair of the Town Council who is running uncontested for a selectman seat, said he’s seen “a lot of energy” on Tuesday morning.

“People seem to be very happy to be out, and it’s great that everybody is approaching the area,” Karl said of the local political committee’s tables. “Nobody is avoiding the area.”

Original Article

New Canaan voters on Tuesday will head to the polls to decide contested races for first selectman and Board of Education.

Republican Dionna Carlson and Democrat Amy Murphy Carroll are vying for the town’s top job.

There are two separate Board of Ed races. 

Republican Hugo Alves, an incumbent, and Democrat Josh Kaye will face off in a race for an open two-year seat on the school board that had been held by a GOPer who resigned earlier this year. 

There are also four four-year Board of Ed seats up for election. Currently those seats are held by three Republicans and one Democrat. Two Democrats are running, incumbent Brendan Hayes and Lauren Connolly Nussbaum. One unaffiliated candidate, Giacomo Landi, also is seeking a four-year term. The Republicans who are running are: Matt Campbell, Lara Kelly and Matt Wexler.

We’ll update this table, showing voter turnout, throughout the day (we’re including a column tracking voter turnout on Election Day two years ago by way of comparison):

New Canaan Election 2023: Voter Turnout, Hourly Count

Hour	Votes—2023	% of Total Voters—2023	% of Total Voters—2021
Running total	6,783
7 to 8 p.m.	349	48.94%	49.36%
6 to 7 p.m.	547	46.44%	47.08%
5 to 6 p.m.	522	42.49%	43.73%
4 to 5 p.m.	459	38.73%	40.08%
3 to 4 p.m.	454	34.52%	36.45%
2 to 3 p.m.	403	32.14%	33.21%
1 to 2 p.m.	461	29.23%	29.79%
12 to 1 p.m.	422	25.91%	26.56%
11 a.m. to 12 p.m.	503	22.86%	23.19%
10 to 11 a.m.	533	19.23%	19.47%
9 to 10 a.m.	513	15.41%	16.15%
8 to 9 a.m.	438	11.69%	13.21%
7 to 8 a.m.	376	8.53%	10.47%
6 to 7 a.m.	234	4.77%	8.57%
Premarked absentees	569	4.12%	7.24%

Source: VoterChecklist

 

According to a sample ballot from the Connecticut Secretary of the State website, other uncontested seats up for election in New Canaan on Tuesday include Town Council, selectman, town clerk, town treasurer, Board of Assessment Appeals and constable. 

Here’s a voter registration summary in New Canaan as of Nov. 1:

Voter Count—Nov. 1, 2023

Democratic	Republican	Unaffiliated	Other	Total
3,749 (27.1%)	5,048 (36.4%)	4,901 (35.4%)	158 (1.1%)	13,856

Source: Registrars of Voters

 

The “Elections” area of the Town Clerk’s web page includes the Voting District Map.

Not sure where you’re going to vote? Check here.

Here’s coverage of the recent League of Women Voters of New Canaan debates:

First Selectman

• First Selectman Candidates Debate Affordable Housing, Appointments at Packed Town Hall

Board of Ed

• Two-Year Board of Ed Candidates Debate Enrollment, Priorities, Classroom Topics
• Candidates for Four-Year Board of Ed Term Debate Budget, Classroom Topics, Reading Materials

Here are more resources about all candidates:

First Selectman

•  Republican Dionna Carlson—candidate website, GOP Caucus debate coverage (affordable housing and cell coverage—July 2023), Q&A (May 2023), podcast interview (October 2023),
• Democrat Amy Murphy Carroll—candidate website, Q&A (July 2023), campaign kickoff coverage (September 2023), podcast interview (October 2023)

Two-year BOE race (one open seat)

• Republican Hugo Alves—candidate bio, podcast interview (September 2023)
• Democrat Josh Kaye—candidate bio, campaign kickoff coverage (September 2023), podcast interview (September 2023)

Four-year BOE race (four open seats)

• Republican Matt Campbell: candidate bio, Q&A (July 2023), podcast interview (October 2023)

• Democrat Lauren Connolly Nussbaum: candidate bio, campaign kickoff coverage (September 2023), podcast interview (August 2023)

• Democrat Brendan Hayes: candidate bio, campaign kickoff coverage (September 2023), podcast interview (October 2023)

• Republican Lara Kelly: candidate bio, Q&A (July 2023), podcast interview (August 2023)

• Unaffiliated Giacomo Landi: Q&A (June 2023), podcast interview (September 2023)
• Republican Matt Wexler: candidate bio, Q&A (July 2023), podcast interview (September 2023)

Here are our opinion pieces on the contested races (reader endorsement letters can be found here): 

• Editorial: Thank You, Dionna and Amy
• Election 2023: NewCanaanite.com Endorsements for Board of Education 

[Comments will be disabled on this post until polls close at 8 p.m.]