Riverhead School Budget Vote Tuesday: What You Need To Know

RIVERHEAD, NY —Riverhead voters will head to the polls Tuesday to cast their ballots in the 2023 to 2024 school budget and school board candidate vote.

Here's a rundown of what you need to know Tuesday before you cast your ballot.

According to the district, the proposed $191,999,201 budget represents a budget-to-budget increase of 13.11 percent and a tax levy increase of 1 percent.

"The Riverhead Central School District proposed budget for the 2023-2024 school year maintains and builds upon existing courses, programs, and extracurricular activities offered within the district. The proposed budget limits the tax levy increase to 1 percent. The proposed budget invests in alternative education, adult education, new courses and instruction support, and technology. It also allows for the expansion of the music and arts and athletics departments, as well as supports district-wide security enhancements," the budget newsletter said.

Seven candidates are vying for four seats to serve on the Board of Education. Three of those seats will fill the three vacant seats, each with a three-year term, which will commence on July 1,to June 30, 2026. The candidates receiving the highest, second highest, and third highest number of votes will be elected to the three terms.

And, to fill the seat of Laurie Downs, who resigned after "harmful" comments about Brentwood earlier this year, there is one vacancy, the term of which commences on May 17 through June 30, 2025; the candidate receiving the fourth highest number of votes will be elected for the one year term.

The candidates for election in the order they will appear on the ballot are: Eve Kaplan-Walbrecht, Virginia Healy, Erica Murphy, Cynthia Redmond, Kimberly Wilder, David Dougherty, James J. Scudder.
Polls are open from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. Tuesday. For information on where to vote, click here..