These unopposed seats could mean one of two things. People are happy with the local government, or burnt out and unengaged. I am hoping it’s the former.”

Carly Reich, School Committee

There is no competition for local offices in Bristol this year. Five incumbents are running for five seats on the Bristol Town Council. Three newcomers are running for three seats on the Bristol Warren Regional School Committee. And Town Administrator Steve Contente and Town Clerk Melissa Cordeiro are both walking back into office without facing competition.

The lack of competition is unprecedented. For many, both inside and outside of the local government, the question is, why?

“I think it is disheartening that there aren’t more competitions for seats,” said Doug Gablinske, a former member of the Bristol town council and the Rhode Island General Assembly. “Elections bring out discussion and positions on important matters before the towns and the schools.”

Gablinske, who most recently served as a state representative for Bristol and Warren, said the tense political climate and the amount of criticism one receives in these positions make it less likely that someone would want to stick their neck out and do the job.

Carly Reich is two years into her second term on the school committee, where she will soon be joined by three new Bristol representatives. In her last election, in 2022, eight candidates competed for three spots, including more than one incumbent vying to retain their seat. This year, there are just three candidates for three spots, and all three incumbents – Sarah Bullard, Marjorie McBride and Karen Cabral – are leaving office. Reich said there are two possible reasons for the lack of candidates this election season.

“I think these unopposed seats could mean one of two things. People are happy with the local government, or burnt out and unengaged. I am hoping it’s the former,” Reich said.

No competition for council

There are mixed feelings in the town council, similar to Reich’s. While sitting councilors believe this could be a sign that voters are satisfied with their work, it could also be a bad sign if people do not want to run for public office. Just two years ago, eight candidates competed for the five seats on the council. This year, all five incumbents essentially reclaimed their seats at the filing deadline in June.

Nathan Calouro, who has been on the town council since 2012, said he has never seen this before, and based on his research, this has never happened in the town before. When he first ran 12 years ago, that was a different story.

“For my first couple elections, if I recall correctly, 15 people were running for five seats. It varies election to election. There have always a few people running,” he said.

His colleagues sang a similar tune. Antonio “Tony” Teixeira, similarly to both Calouro and Reich, said he hopes that people are pleased with the town and the way they are running things. “We are doing a good job,” he said. “We act in the town’s best interests, so hopefully that’s one of the reasons, not because people don’t care. I hope that is not the case.”

The three other members of the council, Aaron Ley, Mary Parella and Tim Sweeney, all also expressed similar hopes. All three pointed out that despite different political affiliations, the five of them rarely disagree. Parella, the lone Republican among Democrats and Independents, quipped that there is no Democratic or Republican way to install a sewer drain.

Ley also said he believes they all work well together, describing it as a “boring council.” He said that when the councilors disagree with each other, rather than bickering, they work it out in a more constructive way.