Former Mayoral Candidate and Councilor LePage Chooses Council Run; Basiliere Enters Ward 1 Race

Former Haverhill City Councilor Colin F. LePage. (Courtesy photograph.)

A 2021 Haverhill mayoral contender and former Haverhill City Council Vice President Colin F. LePage said Thursday he has decided to seek re-election to the City Council as an at-large candidate.

LePage now joins a five-way race for one of four at-large City Council seats, joining Council President Timothy J. Jordan; City Council Vice President John A. Michitson, who took out nomination papers this week; former Council candidate Fred A. Simmons; and Councilor Thomas J. Sullivan. Although the office he seeks has changed, LePage said his goals remain the same.

“As a past city councilor and former mayoral candidate, I worked to ‘achieve more with less’ within the budget for the betterment of Haverhill,” he said in a statement.

As early as 2015, LePage developed a reputation among his colleagues for finding money in unused or obscure city accounts. He first found $200,000 in unused city accounts that went on to help reduce the size of property tax increases. He then discovered $120,000 somehow abandoned in a parking lighting account and won agreement to place the money in a rainy-day account in hopes of convincing the Haverhill School Committee to hire additional health teachers to help combat the opiate drug epidemic.

He said his priorities have remained the same over the years. These include continuing to focus on education, public safety and public works improvements by identifying money in the city budget to ensure these goals are met; increasing public awareness of government operations and budget allocations through clear, transparent communications; continuing advocacy for youth, senior citizens, minorities and small businesses for a better Haverhill to live and work in.

“If elected again, I would be honored and humbled to continue this work and advocate for these principles,” he said.

Conservation Commission Vice Chair Ralph T. Basiliere takes out nomination papers at the Haverhill City Clerk’s office. (Courtesy photograph.)

Competition for one of the newly created Ward councilor positions also heated up Thursday when Conservation Commission Vice Chair Ralph T. Basiliere pulled nomination papers in Ward 1.

“I’m running for Ward 1 city councilor because I care about the community I’ve lived in my whole life. I’ll fight for funding to pave roads, improve parks, protect drinking water, get our children reading at grade level and keep our neighborhood safe,” Basiliere said in a statement.

Veras took out nomination papers on the first day the forms became available May 1.

Campaign
(Names are listed alphabetically under each campaign)
Mayor
Barrett, Melinda E.
Campanile, Debra
Cooper, Guy E.
Eleftheriou, George
Wood, Scott W. Jr.
City Council-At Large
Jordan, Timothy J.
LePage, Colin F.
Michitson, John A.
Simmons, Fred A.
Sullivan, Thomas J.
City Council Ward 1
Basiliere, Ralph T.
Veras, Alexander
City Council Ward 2
Hobbs Everett, Katrina
Sapienza-Donais, Toni
City Council Ward 3
Ferreira, Devan
City Council Ward 4
Lambert, Craig
Lewandowski, Melissa J.
Quimby, Kenneth E.
City Council Ward 5
Morales, Michael
Toohey, Shaun P.
City Council Ward 6
Aguilo, Oliver
McGonagle, Michael S.
City Council Ward 7
Rogers, Catherine P.
School Committee-At Large*
Magliocchetti, Paul A.
Rosa, Richard J.
Ryan-Ciardiello, Maura L.
School Committee Ward 1
No nominees
School Committee Ward 2
Sapienza-Donais, Toni
Sullivan, Gail M.
School Committee Ward 3
Dilonex, Liliana
Ferguson, Cheryl
School Committee Ward 4
Lalumiere, Mikaela
Simmons, Fred A.
Thomas, Courtney
Wood, Scott W. Jr.
School Committee Ward 5
Hickey, Lynette
Story, Jill
School Committee Ward 6
Collins, Yonnie
Pfeil, Chad
School Committee Ward 7
Downer, Edward
Grannemann, Thomas
Rogers, Hunter
* No election in 2023

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