June Trisciani Top Vote Getter in Alderman at Large Race; Danny O’Neil Defeated
Makes History as 1st Woman Elected to Post; Joe Kelly Levasseur Comes in #2 Aided by Republican “Bullets” — OPINION
MANCHESTER, NH — June Trisciani made history on Tuesday, November 2nd: Her 8,230 votes put her in first place in the race for alderman at large.
SHE WON!
June is the first woman to hold the office, which was created by the 1996 City Charter. Manchester has two at-large aldermen , who serve the entire municipality and all its citizens in theory, though in the case of runner-up Joseph Kelly Levasseur, an alderman at large can be dedicated solely to serving themself.
She will serve as a welcome and sorely needed balance to the obstreperous, ethically challenged Levasseur.
Stunning But Not Surprising
June Trisciani’s victory is a remarkable development as this was her first political race. She racked up 26.3% of the total vote.
Though Trisciani’s finish was stunning, it was not surprising to political insiders. She won renown throughout the Queen City for her hard and sustained and extremely effective campaigning. The more she campaigned, the more potential voters she won to her banner.
Her exuberant campaigning brought her a great deal of momentum that helped her in the primary, when she came in third behind Levasseur and former Manchester Fire Chief Dan Goonan, but ahead of Daniel P. O’Neil.
Her dynamic campaigning style gave her The Big Mo which peaked at just the right time, on election day.
The chair of the City Planning Board, June Trisciani is the possessor of an upbeat, winning personality and great intelligence. She is a successful businessperson, and one could see the secret of her success when one met her on the hustings.
She just might one day succeed Joyce Craig as mayor.
In the next two years, her presence on the Board of Mayor and Aldermen should be revolutionary. She is a proven winner and likely will quickly become a major power on the BMA.
Second Place
Incumbent Joe Kelly Levasseur came in second with 7,862 votes (25.1%), beating June Trisciani’s fellow newcomer Dan Goonan (7,772 votes/24.8%) by 90 votes. Twelve-term incumbent Daniel P. “Danny” O’Neil came in last, with 7,430 votes (23.7%).
Each voter is given two votes to cast as they chose among four candidates. Levasseur squeaked out a victory over Dan Goonan with the aid of Republican “Bullets, ” a bullet being when a voter casts only one vote and doesn’t vote the other one (a “blank”).
Danny O’Neil has held the seat of alderman at large since it was created, first winning election in 1997 along with Rich Girard.
Only four men have held the position of alderman at large: O’Neil, Girard (whose second bid for mayor resulted in a third place finish in the primary and yet another defeat), Mike Lopez and Joe Levasseur.
In 2011, Levasseur beat Lopez, who was then serving as “Chairman of the Board” of the Board of Mayor and Alderman.
The BMA meetings are chaired by the Mayor but the Aldermen select their own chair, who under the Charter is “Chairman of the Board.” “
The Mayor and the Chairman of the Board set the agenda of meetings, and while the Mayor picks the heads of committees, the Chairman of the Board picks subcommittee chairs.
O’Neil served as Chairman of the Board in the years after Mike Lopez left the BMA, except for two years during Ted Gatsas fourth term (2016–2018), when Pat Long of Ward 3 served in the post.
Long was defeated by Tim Baines in the 2017 election, and O’Neil served as chairman during both of Joyce Craig’s two terms.
In January, the Board will be sworn in then immediately meet in the aldermanic chambers to organize itself. Likely successors to Dan O’Neil as Chairman of the Board include Pat Long, Kevin Cavanaugh of Ward 1 and Ward 10’s Bill Barry.
