Lauren Feeney, Tim Hughes Elected Library Trustees at 2011 Town Election

The Election Day campaigning by Library Trustee candidate Tim Hughes paid off as he won one of two vacant chairs in the Town Election's only contested race Monday, earning 519 votes to lead all candidates.

"Now the real work begins," Hughes said after embracing friends and his wife at the Center at Medfield Monday evening.

Lauren Feeney won the other Library Trustee seat, beating out third candidate, Fred Rogers, 453-333.

Other Election Results:

• Selectman (vote one): Mark Fisher (winner) 689 votes; James Shilale, 77 votes; Write-in, 5 votes.
• Moderator (vote one): Scott McDermott (winner) 703 votes; Write-in, 1 vote.
• Assessor (vote one): Francis J. Perry, III (winner) 651 votes; Write-in, 2 votes.
• School Commitee (vote two): Debra Noschese (winner), 629 votes; Eileen DeSisto (write-in, winner), 148 votes; Geralyn Warren (write-in), 45 votes; 25 scattered write-ins.
• Planning Board (vote one): Stephen Browne (winner), 637 votes; Write-in, 1 vote.
• Park Commissioner (vote more than two): Lisa G. Louttit (winner), 618 votes; Robert Tatro (winner), 520 votes; Write-in, 1 vote.
• Trust Fund (vote one): Tracey Mitchell (write-in, winner), 16 votes; Scattered write-ins, 27 votes. 

Town Clerk Carol A. Mayer announced there were 808 voters who came out to the polls, one of Medfield's better voter turnouts in quite some time.

"In the past we've had 200 in an entire day," Mayer said. "One year we only had 82 . I ended up dismissing people and there were only four of us [working the election]. We were fighting [to help people] that day." 

Emmy Mitchell, election warden said: "808, I was surprised."

Medfield's population is 12,544 and there are 8,174 voters, meaning this year's election turnout equaled out to about 10 percent of registered voters. 

The Election Day started out slow, but still fared better than the previously mentioned elections, as 266 residents voted within the first six hours of polls being opened and there were 455 voters accounted for at 4 p.m. and 744 at 7 p.m.

Mayer said if there isn't anything people are interested in on the ballot, they don't come out to vote. 

"There's not much going on in this election," Mayer said. 

"If there's a school question on the ballot, people are lining up to come in," Mitchell added. 

The only contested race in this year's Town Election was for Library Trustee, with and Feeney beating out Rogers for the two seats.

There was supposed to be a contested race for selectman as Shilale was on the ballot as a challenger to current selectman Mark Fisher, who was up for re-election (and won Monday), but Shilale announced last week that he was withdrawing his name from the ballot because he wouldn't be able to devout enough time to the position. 

Town Administrator Michael Sullivan told Medfield Patch last week that  and that finding candidates to run for Town Office is a challenge that needs to be addressed. 

"It’s important to vote on Monday to let people in public office know that the public is keeping an eye on what is going on, that it cares what’s going on, but I guess even more important than voting is getting people to run for office,” said Sullivan.

Sullivan told Medfield Patch the likely reason behind people not running for office is because of busy personal lives, as Shilale mentioned, and the state of the economy. 

“These days it doesn’t have the appeal as it did when there was a little money to spend,” he said.  “Now, it’s all about budget cutting and that makes it less appealing for people to run.”