Incumbent candidates Andrew Rice and Devin Rowe celebrate at The Slammer after unofficial results indicate they will hold onto their seats for four more years. Photo by Carly Winchell
Buena Vista Town Staff held a countdown for the last few seconds before 7:00 p.m. Tuesday evening. As the clock hit the top of the hour, the last few ballots were collected and counted. Unofficial results show both incumbent candidates keeping their seats with Maggie Huyck and Micha Rosenoer joining the Board. Both ballot questions appear to have passed.
There was a low voter turnout for this April election with 616 returned ballots out of 2,231 that were sent out on March 11. According to Town Clerk Paula Barnett, the just-under 28 percent voter turnout is down 33 percent from a 61 percent turnout during the April 2018 election, which featured a contested mayoral race and eleven trustee candidates.
The ballot box was placed back into the vault after the final ballots were pulled to count and Town Administrator Brian Berger assisted Barnett in double-checking the numbers before announcing the unofficial results. The message went out just a bit before 7:30 p.m.
The unofficial results for the 2024 Buena Vista Municipal Election. Image courtesy of Town Clerk Paula Barnett.
Buena Vista Board of Trustees Results:
427 votes for Micha Rosenoer
440 votes for Andrew Rice
298 votes for Maggie Huyck
174 votes for Andy Matkovich
404 votes for Devin Rowe
259 votes for Thomas Brown
As it stands, Rosenoer, Rice, and Rowe will fill the four-year seats and Huyck will fill the two-year seat.
Ballot Question Results:
Ballot Question No. 2A: Change Election Date
Yes – 355 votes
No – 244 votes
It appears that Town elections will be moved to November to allow coordination with the county. There was a burst of applause and hugs at Town Hall among staff when they saw elections would be moved to November. The relief was evident as regular elections will now be able to be coordinated with the county. Special elections and runoffs will still be handled by the Town.
Ballot Question No. 2B: Publication of Ordinances
Yes – 376 votes
No – 221 votes
Likely, Ordinances will now be published by title only in the local paper with the full text available online.
These results are unofficial. The unofficial results are also available on the Town’s website and have been posted at Town Hall.
The official results will not be available until April 11 because the last day to receive Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) ballots (postmarked on or before April 2) and for ballots with signature discrepancies or missing signatures to be resolved is April 10, after which the Election Judges will count the received ballots on April 11.
The three Trustee candidates receiving the highest number of votes are elected to serve a four-year term expiring in 2028. The candidate receiving the next highest number of votes will fill the position expiring in 2026. The terms for the new trustees will begin at the April 23 Board of Trustees meeting, and a swearing-in ceremony will occur at this meeting.
Celebration at The Slammer
Rice and Rowe held a joint election night party at The Slammer on Main Street, which began just before the polls closed. Once Town Hall was locked up for the night, Barnett stopped by to offer her congratulations to the two incumbents who will most likely be holding onto their seats for the next four years. There were a number of cheers and hugs for Barnett, who has worked tirelessly on carrying out the election.
Also in attendance were Town Treasurer Phillip Puckett, Town Administrator Brian Berger, Trustees Peter Hylton-Hinga and Sue Cobb, and Mayor Libby Fay. Trustee Gina Lucrezi arrived later to offer her congratulations as well.
When asked if she was excited the election process was mostly over, Fay agreed and expressed admiration for the current Board’s ability to work well together. “We have an amazing town staff,” she added, complimenting the Town’s ability to work together as a cohesive whole.
Fay said that Cobb and Hylton-Hinga would be missed but new Trustees Rosenoer and Huyck would be welcomed into the group. The mayor praised Cobb and Hylton-Hinga for their ability to consider topics carefully and think things through.
The final full meeting with the current Board of Trustees is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on April 9 at the BV Community Center in the Pinon Room before the new Board is sworn in on April 23.
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