Table of Contents
Several incumbents and first-time candidates appear on the Town Clerk’s posted list of certified nomination papers for the 2026 Winchester town election following the Jan. 30 filing deadline, according to a document displayed at Town Hall.
The list reflects nomination papers that were pulled, returned and later certified, with some certifications dated in the days immediately after the deadline.
Among incumbents seeking re-election, Philip Frattaroli has pulled papers for another one-year term as town moderator. Michelle Prior, the incumbent Select Board member whose three-year seat is on the ballot, also returned papers and is listed as certified.
Incumbents Richard Michienzi, chair of the Board of Assessors, and Dr. Gregory Sawicki, chair of the Board of Health, are both listed as having pulled and returned papers for their respective three-year terms.
On the Planning Board, incumbents Keri Layton and Nicholas Rossettos are seeking re-election to two available three-year seats. They are joined on the list by Amy Beliveau and Jason Roeder, both of whom would be newcomers to the board, if elected.
The School Committee race includes John Bellaire and Heather von Mering, neither of whom currently holds the seat up for election. The three-year position is presently held by incumbent Michelle Bergstrom, who, as of the earlier filing deadline, had not pulled papers.
New candidates also appear in races without incumbent filers. Katherine Ho is listed as a candidate for one of two three-year seats on the Board of Library Trustees, currently held by Angela Murdough and Victoria Garcia-Albea, neither of whom is listed as having pulled papers.
Brenda Kleschinsky is listed as a candidate for a one-year term on the Housing Authority, another race in which no incumbent had filed as of the deadline.
Nomination papers were due by noon Jan. 30. Certification dates reflect the clerk’s verification of signatures and do not necessarily indicate when papers were submitted. The annual town election is scheduled for March 21.
For those planning to vote, key deadlines include March 11, 2026, to register, 5 p.m. March 16, 2026, to request a mail-in ballot and noon March 20, 2026, to apply for an absentee ballot.
Voting in the 2026 town election
Voters who will be out of town on Election Day, Saturday, March 21, 2026, or who have a disability may cast absentee ballots in the Town Clerk’s Office beginning Monday, March 2. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot is noon Friday, March 20, 2026.
Vote-by-mail applications are being accepted and will be processed upon receipt.
In-person early voting begins Saturday, March 14, in the Winchester Room at Town Hall, first floor, 71 Mount Vernon St.
Early voting schedule (in person):
— Saturday, March 14: 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
— Monday, March 16: 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
— Tuesday, March 17: 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
— Wednesday, March 18: 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
— Thursday, March 19: 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
— Friday, March 20: 8 a.m.-noon, Winchester Room, Town Hall (first floor)
Questions should go to Town Clerk MaryEllen Marshall at 781-721-7130 or mmarshall@winchester.us.
Will Dowd is a Massachusetts journalist who covers municipal government and community life for Winchester News. He previously co-founded the Marblehead Current and now runs The Marblehead Independent, a reader-funded digital newsroom.
