Concord Mayor Gets 2 Late Challengers

CONCORD, NH — Not unlike four years ago when a number of last minute filers made the Concord City Council and Board of Education races interesting, the same thing happened today for 2017. On Monday, two late filers – Linda Rae Banfill of Palm Street and Roy Schweiker of Chapel Street – threw their hats into the ring to challenge incumbent mayor, Jim Bouley.

Banfill, of the Marine Corp League, follows in the footsteps of a number of colorful candidates for mayor in recent years in Concord with police records. She was arrested back in October 2014, on a felony criminal mischief charge for reportedly destroying a parking kiosk – affectionately dubbed “chaoses,” by 2011 and 2013 mayoral candidate, John Cook. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Concord NH Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

She also held a protest a few years ago outside of the SEA/SEIU 1984 headquarters after Banfill noticed its American flag in tatters.

Schweiker is a regular at city council meetings during the last decade or so, often offering comments on budgets as well as alternative and thoughtful ideas and tweaks to the city’s myriad of proposals.

City Council Races

Three new candidates also filed to run today in Ward races.

Shawn Riley – the Deputy Fire Chief in Laconia who ran for an at-large council seat in 2015 – is running against incumbent Rob Werner in Ward 5, who has been in the seat since he was elected in a special election in 2007.

Incumbent Ward 7 City Councilor Keith Nyhan, who was first elected in 2005, is being challenged by Rod Forey of Norwich Street, a former police officer and hockey coach.

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In Ward 8, voters will see a rematch of 2015, as Dennis Soucy of Russell Street filed again to challenge Gail Matson of Garvins Falls Road. Matson won by 60 votes two years ago after barely being first elected in 2013, versus Soucy and then-incumbent, Dick Patten, by 10 votes.

Six other Ward councilors – Brent Todd, Allan Herschlag, Jennifer Kretovic, Byron Champlin, Linda Kenison, and Candace Bouchard – will all be re-elected by default, presuming there are no well-organized write-in efforts to unseat them.

Ward 10, as previously reported, has a three-way contest between incumbent councilor Dan St. Hilaire and challengers David Sky and Elvir Zulkic.

School Board Candidates

Also today, the Concord School Board saw two new – and one old – candidates running for seats.

Rusty Cofrin – a former teacher from Groton Drive who held the District C school board seat between 2013 and 2016 – filed to run again today. Also filing to run was Chuck Crush of North Curtisville Road in Concord. They join Deodonne Bhattarai, a local attorney, who filed to run last week for the open seat being vacated by Alana Kimball.

Also filing to run today for the District B seat was Liza Poinier of Morton Street, the former executive director of Intown Concord. She will face-off against Barbara Higgins of Liberty Street, who is seeking her third term on the board.

Three candidates who filed last week are running for the District A School Board seat that represents Wards 1, 2, 3, and 4: Incumbent Thomas Croteau, Danielle Smith, and Liza Dube.

Credits: Linda Banfill by Brian Blackden; Roy Schweiker by W. Weisiger/Forest Society of NH; Bouley photo by Tony Schinella.