Voters Drive Students Out of Haverhill Schools on Election Day

(WHAV News file photograph.)

Haverhill High School is one of several school buildings used as polling places on Election Day.

While Haverhill voters Tuesday head to polling places, Haverhill public school students will have a day off from classes and the school department makes way for a professional development day for school staff.

Haverhill Assistant Superintendent of Schools Jared Fulgoni explained to WHAV Monday with people coming and going to vote at several normally busy schools it made sense to hold a staff professional development day in place of classes.

“When we lay out the school year calendar, we try to tie professional development to non-school days,” Fulgoni said.

Meanwhile, voters Tuesday in greater Haverhill and beyond will, in addition to the presidential race, decide a handful of contested lower races for state offices including Essex County sheriff.

On the general election ballot, Democrat and Lynn police Chief Kevin F. Coppinger faces Republican Anne M. Manning-Martin of Peabody in the bid to succeed current Essex County Sheriff Frank G. Cousins, who is not seeking another term.

In the race for the 3rd Congressional District U.S. House seat, Haverhill Republican Roseann L. “Ann” Ehrhard Wofford makes her second bid to unseat incumbent Democrat Congresswoman Niki Tsongas of Lowell.

For the 5th District Governor’s Council seat, Republican Richard A. Baker of West Newbury is challenging Democrat incumbent Eileen R. Duff of Gloucester.

Meanwhile, in local legislative races, incumbent Democrat Rep. Linda Dean Campbell faces independent challenger Nicholas Torresi of Methuen in her bid for another term.

Also, voters in the Andover area will decide whether incumbent Democrat state Sen. Barbara A. L’Italien and Republican state Rep. James J. Lyons Jr., both of Andover, will serve another term. L’Italien Tuesday is facing Republican challenger Susan M. Laplante of Lawrence, while Lyons faces second-time Democrat candidate Oscar Camargo of Andover, who ran unsuccessfully two years ago in a primary race against Democrat Rep. Diana Dizoglio of Methuen.

DiZoglio, along with Democrat incumbent Rep. Brian S. Dempsey of Haverhill and incumbent Sen. Kathleen A. O’Connor Ives, are unopposed on the ballot. Republican Rep. Leonard Mirra of West Newbury is also unchallenged in Tuesday’s election.

Polls in Haverhill are open Tuesday, 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.

The Haverhill City Council will not meet Tuesday night due to the election. The next meeting will be Tuesday, Nov. 15.

Stay tuned to WHAV for national and local election coverage, beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday. WHAV will interrupt network programs as local election results are known.

WHAV will air Democracy Now!’s five-hour election night special beginning at 7.

Amy Goodman and Juan González host a rolling roundtable discussion across the country as they cover results from the presidential election to congressional and state races as well as ballot initiatives.

Democracy Now!’s election night special features interviews and perspectives listeners won’t hear elsewhere. Goodman and González look at what the election results mean for war and peace, climate change, income inequality, racial and economic justice, LGBTQ rights and other global issues.

 

One thought on “Voters Drive Students Out of Haverhill Schools on Election Day

  1. So, why not hold elections on a Saturday ? Oh, we could never do that say the Establishment types. Why ? Well, more people would be able to vote ! Hypocrites that they are, they rail against voter ID suppressing votes of the poor and underprivileged. Well wouldn’t it be easier for them to vote on a Saturday ? Of course it would. Time for a change