The Democrats had a clean sweep of most of the elected boards on Election Day, Tuesday, November 4.

Democrat Bruce Walczak beat out incumbent Republican Jeff Capeci for first selectman, 5,183 to 4,110. Capeci will have a seat on the Board of Selectmen alongside Democrat Paul Lundquist, who drew 5,093 votes. Republican Charlie Gardner received 4,065 votes.

Walczak commended the entire Democratic Town Committee and other candidates for their hard work and said the team was “running on all cylinders” towards their success.

Saying he felt “numb” after realizing he had won, Walczak said that in his career he has had “lots of new assignments.”

“I guess I’ll approach this the same,” said Walczak.

Walczak said that Newtown has a “great team” of department heads, and he’s heard “nothing but compliments” about them.

“I hope to pull the departments together with the purpose of pulling together in the same direction,” said Walczak. “I want the team clear on the mission, and we’ll have monthly or quarterly meetings to ensure that everyone is on objective. I think Newtown is mature enough to move forward with a sophisticated model like that.”

Capeci took a minute to talk with The Newtown Bee after it was clear he had lost the race for first selectman. Capeci said, “We campaigned hard, and I just don’t think it was in the books for us. It’s a Democrat state ... Things that are going on in Washington, I think people voted based on party affiliation and not necessarily my record, and that’s disappointing to me.”

When asked about how he believed the past two years went for him, he said, “I thought they went well, and I hope I put the town in a better place than it was when I got it, and I wish Bruce very well in running the town the next two years.”

Capeci still has a seat on the Board of Selectmen, and he hopes to “do what [he] always [does], advocate for [his] constituents.” He wants to fight for lower taxes and development that is “in keeping with our beautiful town.

“Obviously, I’m disappointed, but the voters have spoken, and I honor that, and I thank all of the voters who voted for me and Charlie, and I look forward to working on behalf of the town as a volunteer going forward. I will still be the voice for those who voted for me, and I thank them so much,” Capeci said.

A surprise upset was Democratic challenger Renee Weimann beating out longtime Republican Town Clerk Debbie Aurelia Halstead, 4,878 to 4,396.

Weimann and a number of Town Clerk Office employees hugged following the announcement of her win, with Weimann looking shocked and tearful with joy.

Halstead had served in the position of Town Clerk for 18 years since she was appointed by former First Selectman Herb Rosenthal in August 2007 to replace retiring Town Clerk Cindy Curtis. Halstead had been assistant town clerk prior to that, since 2005.

Weimann has been assistant town clerk for most of those same 18 years, and said that she plans to lead the clerk’s office with “common sense” and build with “technology towards the future.” She also hopes to make the town clerk an appointed, rather than elected, position. The town clerk became an elected position in 2008.

Newtown Republican Town Committee members gathered at Newtown Community Center to wait and watch as election results poured in throughout the night. NRTC members listened to classic rock and chatted amongst themselves as the night passed. Many members brought food and drinks to share with the others, including sourdough bread. While the numbers were slow to come in, the defeat was quickly noted by First Selectman Jeff Capeci. Capeci noted that it “[did not] look great” around 9:20 pm.

Many candidates noted that it had been “a long day,” with many of them campaigning outside polling locations.

Judy Thomas, a local resident who fights for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), said that she “[hopes] Capeci gets back into office to support me in getting support for individuals with autism who slip through the cracks.”

Capeci noted he was “faring okay” as District 2 numbers came in around 8:45 pm. He added that the decision was “up to the voters to decide.”

When the numbers from all three districts were first displayed on the screen, the music stopped and the room went quiet. Tension permeated the air as many Republican candidates realized Democrats had gotten a majority of the votes for all positions. Ben Ruben, a Republican Legislative Council member, said to the crowd that it was difficult to “escape the headway” created by the Democratic party throughout the country.

Michele Buzzi, secretary of NRTC, said, “[This] does not mean we aren’t gonna come back.” She encouraged the attendees to continue to eat and drink while early voting and absentee ballots were being counted.

Jenn Hubal Larkin took the mic and addressed the crowd, too. She said, “Jeff, you did a great job ... I do believe the wrong person for Newtown won ... I’d be curious to see how many vacation days [Capeci] left on the books.”

Phil Carroll, chairman of NRTC, said, “[Capeci] did a great job.” He added that there had been a lot of people “screaming and hollering” at Capeci during meetings, and he reminded the crowd that “we can do that, too.”

Buzzi added, “It’s gonna be a tough two years with Mr Walczak at the helm.”

Capeci then addressed the crowd. He said that while he hoped he could keep his campaign focused on local issues, “it was just hard to fight.” He added, “I hope Bruce can stay up for all those meetings,” and he believed it to be a “bad day for Newtown.”

Ruben encouraged NRTC members “to band together” and “let Bruce know what he’s doing wrong.”

Meanwhile, at the Democratic Town Committee headquarters, the beginning of the night was marked with nervous energy and uncertainty, but as the evening wore on, that was replaced with increasing confidence and happiness as the numbers trickled in. When District 2 numbers came in, giving Walczak a slight lead, small smiles became commonplace and many tried to calculate the odds of a Walczak victory, along with the rest of the Democrats. When Republican-leaning District 3 came in and also had a lead for Walczak, the outcome seemed promising for Democrats, but no one wanted to “jinx it” by saying anything out loud.

By the time Democrat-leaning District 1 came in, the writing seemed to be on the wall, but the town clerk race was still in doubt — Halstead was ahead by about 100ish votes. However, the roughly 3,000 early and absentee votes were still outstanding, representing about one third of the overall vote count. Nothing could be called for certain.

After 11 pm, the early voting totals came in and the Democratic headquarters at 3 Queen Street erupted in cheers and celebration, with DTC Chairman Alex Villamil calling the outcome “a landslide.” Many went to congratulate both Walczak and Weimann on their victories over the incumbent Republicans.

The Board of Finance will move from a 3-3 tied board to a 4-2 Democratic majority board, with Democrats John Fletcher (5,101), James Gaston (5,313), Janette Lamoureaux (4,996) and Beth Young (5,136) taking seats alongside Republicans AmyBeth Laroche (4,422) and Steve Goodridge (4,366). Republican Jim Landy (4,354) and Republican-caucusing independent Barney Molloy (4,191) did not get seats.

All four Board of Education members seeking seats received them, but Democrats will retain a majority. They were Democrat Doria Linnetz (5,474), and Republicans Melissa Beylouni (4,915), Don Ramsey (4,826), and Shannon Tomai (4,760).

The Legislative Council will move from a 7-5 Democratic majority to a 9-3 Democratic supermajority.

In District 1, Democrats Christopher Eide (1,750), Christopher Gardner (1,856), and Laura Miller (1,822) will be joined by Republican Steve Stolfi (1,436). Republicans Brian Leonardi (1,406) and Derek Pisani (1,428) did not receive seats.

In District 2, Democrats Jordana Bloom (1,712), Eric Paradis (1,686), and Keith Alexander (1,728) will be joined by Republican Donna Rahtelli (1,370). Republicans Jennifer Nicoletti (1,361) and Matt Mihalcik (1,363) did not receive seats.

In District 3, Democrats Michelle Embree Ku (1,725), Arnie Berman (1,606), and Lily MacHugh (1,596) will be joined by Republican Ben Ruben (1,426). Republicans Tracey Pertoso (1,414) and John Zachos (1,341) and petitioning candidate Tom Long (411) did not receive seats.

Alexander, the current Legislative Council chairman, said the plan was to “continue to do the best we can for Newtown.”

“We’ll make sure we’re here for Newtown residents when they need us and do all we can to keep people in their housing,” said Alexander.

On Planning and Zoning, Democrat Peter Schwarz (5,297) will be joined by Republican Roy Meadows (4,228). Republican Gregory Rich (4,120) did not receive a seat.

For Planning and Zoning Alternates, Democrats Don Mitchell (5,110) and Jill Soderholm (5,212) each received seats, joined by Republican David Landau (4,342). Republican Will Drew (4,080) did not receive a seat.

On the Police Commission, Democrat Dan Cruson (5,012) and Republican Scott Cicciari (3,923) were both elected to seats. Republican Keith Torreso (3,789) and Forward Party member Neil Chaudhary (1,729) did not receive a seat.

For the Zoning Board of Appeals, winning candidates were Democrat Alan Clavette (5,310), and Republican Rachel Rowan (4,284), as well as Republican Dennis Bloom (5,076) who was elected to a two year term.

For Zoning Board of Appeals alternates, Democrat Betsy Paynter (5,474) and Republicans Stephen Riccitelli (4,496) and Peter Wlasuk (4,429) all received seats.

For Edmond Town Hall Board of Managers, Democrat Herb Rosenthal (5,422) and Republican Melanie Mattegat (3,650) both were named to the board.

The election saw high turnout for a local election year, with 9,414 residents of 18,421 eligible voters casting a vote, a 51.1% turnout. The last local election in 2023 only saw a 40.5% turnout. Of those 9,414 voters, 3,079 votes were cast during early voting, and six by absentee voting.

Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.

Reporter Sam Cross can be reached at sam@thebee.com.