Westport eyes consolidating voting precincts into one

Town clerk Kristin Stinson lays out plan in appearance before finance committee

By Ted Hayes
Posted 1/14/25

It won’t be in place when Westport holds its local elections in early April. But a plan by Westport Town Clerk Kristin Stinson would significantly change the way residents vote at future …

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Westport eyes consolidating voting precincts into one

Town clerk Kristin Stinson lays out plan in appearance before finance committee

Posted

It won’t be in place when Westport holds its local elections in early April. But a plan by Westport Town Clerk Kristin Stinson would significantly change the way residents vote at future elections, if her 2025-26 budget is approved as written.

Last Tuesday, Stinson told members of the finance committee that she hopes to consolidate all voting precincts into one voting location, likely at the high school, starting next year.

“That is my goal,” she told committee members as they reviewed her 2025-26 budget request.

“It minimizes requirements for poll workers (and) it minimizes the requirement for police presence, which is important because that’s actually a pretty decent chunk of the expenses.”

And beyond that, she added, “I think it would be better for voters (for me) to be present in one location and be able to sit down with people, and help my staff be successful. I drive a lot on election day — I just drive in circles, precinct to precinct, doing stuff and getting phone calls and texts.”

Though financial savings won’t be dramatic because there will still be requirements for poll workers and police, as well as other expenses,”we’ll notice it,” she said.

Fincom review

Stinson, who oversees both the town clerk’s office and elections, made her pitches for each at the second finance committee meeting held to go over various department heads’ requests for the coming fiscal year.

While town administrator James Hartnett asked heads to keep requested expenses as low as possible, Stinson increased her requested salary slightly above what she otherwise would have, in an effort to bring her closer to other department heads and other town clerks around the region.

Her plan would increase her salary from $77,431 to about $85,000, she said.

“I feel (that) aligns with the other department heads,” she said. “A lot of them get paid significantly more but they also have more experience, or there’s a variety of other experience or they’ve been here longer. I think it also aligns with the other town clerks across Massachusetts,” which in towns with population sizes similar to Westport earn anywhere from $85,000 to $100,000.

“I feel like I’m on the low end” of that range, she said. “The Town Meeting will decide whether that’s realistic or not.”

While Westport faces a tough budget cycle this year, fincom members who spoke said they support her request, as did Hartnett when Stinson gave him her requested budget.

“It certainly would put her in line with others,” Cindy Brown, a member of the finance committee, said.

Brown noted that Westport’s personnel and select boards recently reviewed a wage study for the Town of Westport, which among other things found that many of the town’s salaries lag behind their counterparts in nearby communities.

“I will certainly confirm what Kristin was saying,” Brown said. “The salary for town clerk was significantly below what other communities were paying, smaller and larger than Westport. When you think about the role of the clerk ... it’s really become a very significant position and one with a tremendous amount of responsibility. It always has been but it seems to be highlighted so much more in the last 10 years or so.”

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