Oxford GOP First Selectman Candidate Says He'd Serve Full Time if Elected

, who is expected announce his bid for candidate for first selectman on May 1, stated in a news release Monday he will be willing to serve full time if elected.

Some residents have noted in comments on Oxford Patch that Temple has a law practice and questioned whether he would be would sacrifice time away from practicing law to serve in the town’s top elected office.

"When we first considered a run at the Oxford first selectman’s office, I had many discussions with my family,” he stated in the release. “In addition to the consideration of time away from home, personal finances were brought up. We realize that if I get elected as first selectman, we will have to make a bit of a financial sacrifice. We are prepared to do that.”

Temple, who said last week that he will announce his candidacy for first selectman at 2 p.m. on May 1 at the , stated in the news release he intends to scale back his law practice to whatever degree is required to meet the commitment of working in the selectmen’s office full time. 

In the release, Temple stated he’s uniquely qualified to serve in the first selectman’s seat and that, because of his experience, he would not have a big learning curve if elected. He noted his many years of experience as a municipal attorney in Seymour and Oxford, and as a former chairman of the Seymour Board of Finance and former member of Seymour’s Board of Education. He also served on Seymour's Board of Police Commissioners.

“I was always able to make adjustments in my court workload in the past,” he stated in the release, adding that he has competent attorneys who work for him who can handle his cases if he is involved in court proceedings that may interfere with his duties as first selectman.

Temple also noted that he’s always been a hard worker, and said he graduated from college in two years and from law school in two-and-a-half years. He also said he has some very strong opinions about how to govern the town, especially in the area of economic development.

“In short, my position is that Oxford will come first,” he stated in the release. "…I am anxious to start the process. Helping Oxford is my passion and the town is my priority.”

As of Monday, Temple was the only person who had announced his intention to run for the first selectman's seat that will be vacated in November. First Selectman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers, a Democrat who has held the seat for the past four years, said she will not run for another term.