Election Night 2025 in Stafford

Election night in Stafford was a rollercoaster of emotions for candidates and for anyone with a vested interest in the outcome. While the outcome of the selectmen races seemed clear early on – with Bill Morrison and Tony Armelin jumping out to an early lead in the first and second districts – some of the other races completely changed hands after the early votes were counted.

Bill Morrison (left) and Tony Armelin (right) were elected to the Board of Selectmen on Nov. 5, 2025 (Image Source: Democratic Town Committee Facebook page.)

For instance, after the election-day ballots were counted, the Republican Town Committee-endorsed Planning and Zoning Candidates (PZC), David Roy and Jim Lyon, held slim leads over their Democratic endorsed (but still Republican) opponents, Dave Palmberg and Rich Shuck. But once the early vote tallies came in, things changed quickly. Roy’s and Lyon’s lead of a few dozen votes was quickly erased as Palmberg and Shuck each garnered north of 400 votes, while Roy and Lyon picked up fewer than 200 more each. And, then of course, there were the absentee votes, which were much fewer but still increased the gap between the two sets of candidates. (It’s worth noting that the PZC has several open alternate seats, so anyone who really wants a chance to help make zoning decisions could volunteer for those positions.)

A similar story played out for Shelly Hurchala West, a Democrat who won a seat on the Board of Finance (BOF), along with Republican Rob Proulx. Both West and Proulx have been serving as alternates on the BOF, so their faces will be familiar. Over at the Board of Education, though, there will be two new Democratic faces: Jennifer Vail and Elizabeth Dobson. Erica Bushior and Chris Paradiso, both Republicans, maintained their seats.

The rollercoaster of emotions didn’t start on election night. “I actually came and said I was not gonna run,” said Morrison during his victory speech. His sons convinced him to do otherwise – though he has also pledged to try to find more time to attend the grandkids’ events and achieve a better work-life balance. “It started as just an idea that Rick [Hartenstein] had,” Morrison said while thanking the outgoing Selectman who initially helped convince Morrison to run in 2023.

Stafford First Selectman also thanked Beth DaDalt, the Executive Assistant, who helps Morrison track the budget on a near-daily basis (you’ll hear Morrison say this many times in the upcoming budget season), and who is the keeper of the knowledge that ensures the stream of Selectmen who have inhabited her office over the years do their job.

While thanking the Democratic Town Committee (DTC) for its support, Morrison said he tells officials from other towns about the DTC’s robust membership and attendance at meetings, noting that they are frequently “flabbergasted” to learn meetings often have 40 attendees or more. To put it simply, many other political town committees don’t have nearly as robust or active a membership, according to what Morrison hears. 

The DTC Morrison said, did something he called “unprecedented.” “They introduced two Republicans to the slate, and it was the right move,” he said, referring to Plamberg and Shuck, who, by this point, had learned they would be heading back to the PZC. Armelin told me that the DTC’s decision to endorse Shuck and Palmberg was a significant factor in his own decision to run. Morrison and Armelin will be joined by Tim Cromwell, who not only won more votes than his running mate, Brian Bagley, but is already a selectman, having been appointed to fill a vacancy.