Election Watch: Murphy Wins Decisively, Conant Escapes by Two Votes

10:20 pm

Important bullets from tonight's election results (all results still remain unofficial at this time):

• Dan Murphy beat out Dave Nelson in every precinct on his way to a 612-246 victory for the one-year Board of Selectmen seat.
• Sandra Conant beat out Elaine Sears for Housing Authority by two votes, 377-375. Sears will not be filing a petition for a recount, she said.
• Irwin Cohen and David Mills won as write-ins to the Finance Committee - Cohen for a one-year seat and Mills for a three-year seat.
• All unopposed candidates were victorious
• 886 people voted today, approximately 6% of voters, according to Gillis. The total still doubles last year's total of 414 voters.

9:55 pm

All candidates running unopposed were victorious, and a total of 886 people cast their ballot today, according to Town Clerk Jeremy Gillis' unofficial results.

Most notably, Todd Gornstein won the three-year Board of Selectmen seat. Gornstein scored 582 votes, 21 citizens voted for a write in and 283 citizens left the spot blank.

Gornstein will join Dan Murphy as two new members on the Board of Selectmen replacing Irwin Cohen and a seat left vacant by John Haederle.

614 people cast their vote for Gerald Noonan for the Assessor position. Four people wrote in a candidate and 286 people left it blank.

639 people voted for Gilbert Heino for Board of Health. Five people voted for a write-in and 242 people left in blank.

For School Committee, two people ran for two spots. 542 people voted for Caroline O'Neill. 447 people voted for Laurie Han. 11 people wrote in a candidate and 772 school committee spots were left blank.

In addition to the one write-in position for a three-year Finance Committee seat, which David Mills won with 32 votes, two other people ran for the three spots. Kimberly Dubois had 478 votes and Jack Waksman had 423 votes.

For the two-year FinCom position, Frederick Isleib had 529 votes, 44 people voted for a write-in and 313 people left it blank.

9:40 pm

Elaine Sears said that despite losing by only two votes, she will choose not to petition for a recount. She said, however, that she still wants to bring "fresh, new ideas" to the board and will look to run sometime in the future.

9:20 pm

Town Clerk Jeremy Gillis said the results for Housing Authority, which saw Sandra Conant win by two votes, 377-375, were the closest results he had ever seen in his three-years as a town clerk.

Sandra Conant, who arrived shortly after results were tallied, said she was "very nervous" throughout the day and was surprised that the results were that close.

Conant carried precinct two, which is home to Parker Terrace and Elise Circle by a margin of 122-98. She also won in precinct one, 57-47, and precinct five, 66-53.

Elaine Seares won in precinct three, 48-22, precinct four, 85-70, and precinct six 47-40.

9:00 pm

More results are coming in, including some write-in results. Now-former Selectman Irwin Cohen will stay in Town Government as a write-in winner for the one-year Finance Committee seat by a tally of 38-23 over the next highest write-in, Kristine Abrams.

David Mills had 32 votes for the write-in as a three-year Finance Committee member. Town Clerk Jeremy Gillis said all results are currently unofficial and will be made official tomorrow.

8:30 pm

The results are in. Dan Murphy is a new Selectman in Easton, winning decisively by a count of 612 to 246.

Sandra Conant won by a margin of two votes to retain her seat on the Housing Authority. She won by a vote of 377 to 375 over Elaine Sears, Town Clerk Jeremy Gillis said. He said Sears can request a recount by obtaining a petition. Patch will have more information as all of the numbers come in.

7:50 pm

With polls set to close in 10 minutes, Town Clerk Jeremy Gillis said approximately 900 people came out to vote today. Patch will keep you updated on the results as they come in.

6:00 pm

If you haven't already, make sure you make it out to the polls at Oliver Ames High School. Constested seats include a Board of Selectmen contest for a one-year seat between Finance Committee member Dan Murphy and Easton Republican Town Committee member Dave Nelson. A seat for the Housing Authority is also still up for grabs between Sandy Conant and challenger Elaine Sears.

Patch will have results for both races when polls close at 8 p.m.

2:00 pm

Town clerk Jeremy Gillis said that although turnout is low so far for this year's town election, it is still better than last year.

At last spring's town election, Gillis said 416 people voted. This year, 344 people had voted by 1 p.m. He said there is an average of approximately 60 voters per hour. Because of low turnouts throughout the afternoon, he said he expects a total of 650 voters to turn out this year.

"Precinct two has been the heaviest because of the Housing Authority," Gillis said Tuesday afternoon.

Precinct two is home to Elise Circle and Parker Terrace. Residents from the housing complexes turned out in heavy numbers throughout the morning, Gillis said. Elaine Sears and Sandy Conant are which helps oversee the complexes.

He said there have been no issues with traffic or voters so far, and the day has run smoothly.

6:00 am

The day has finally arrived: Election Day in Easton.

Easton residents will have their choice at the polls today in two contested races. Finance Committee member Dan Murphy and Easton Republican Town Committee member Dave Nelson are squaring off for the one-year Board of Selectmen seat left vacant by John Haederle. And, Sandra Conant is looking to retain her seat on the Housing Authority against challenger Elaine Sears. Polls will be open today at between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m.

In addition to the contested races, a number of candidates are running unopposed. Another current Finance Committee member, Todd Gornstein, is running unopposed for Irwin Cohen's three-year Board of Selectmen seat. Gerald Noonan is running for Assessor unopposed. Gilbert Heino is running for a two-year Board of Health seat unopposed. Caroline O'Neill is running unopposed for re-election to the School Committee, and newcomer Laurie Han is running for another School Committee seat unopposed.

On the Finance Committee, there is a write-in space for a one-year term, Frederick Isleib is running unopposed for a two-year seat and Kimberly Dubois and Jack Waksman are running for two three-year seats. A sample ballot is attached to this article.

Patch will have full coverage of the election today from Lothrop Street, including complete results. Be sure to follow us on twitter (@EastonPatch) for up-to-the-minute information.

If you're stuck on who to vote for in the contested races, Patch has you covered. Check out election coverage and information on the candidates here: