Election 2025 has turned in a stunning result, with candidates endorsed by the Wilton Democratic Town Committee sweeping all of the races.

While a handful of Republican candidates were elected to some seats, the outcome of this election means that of Wilton’s four primary boards, three of them — Board of Selectmen, Board of Education and Planning and Zoning Commission — will now have Democratic majorities, and the six-member Board of Finance will be split evenly between the two parties.

It’s not clear whether this outcome was a response to national politics — similar decisive Democratic victories marked elections across the country, including in heavily watched races like the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial elections, and California’s redistricting Proposition 50 — or reaction to local Wilton issues, including a controversial Charlie Kirk scarecrow and the politicized rhetoric brought into the race for Planning and Zoning, or a combination of the two.

Lines at the polls for election 2025 Credit: GOOD Morning Wilton

Judging by brisk activity at the polls Tuesday — with final turnout numbers unavailable as of press time but estimated above 40% — voters were motivated to turn out and make their voices heard. Whatever they were saying, the final numbers send a clear message in a growing political divide.

DTC Chair Tom Dubin said that Wilton’s Democrats are thrilled with what he called the “historic results” of Election 2025.

“The most important part of the equation started many months ago when we convinced such strong candidates to take a chance and run. To a person, they worked their tails off, knocking on doors and meeting neighbors wherever possible. We’re excited to see what they can do for Wilton, and we invite all in town to be part of that process,” Dubin said.

GMW has reached out to officials from the Republican Town Committee for comment and will update the story when we hear back.

Here are the preliminary results, released by Wilton’s Registrars of Voters Karen Birck and Annalisa Stravato, at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, Nov. 5.

*(winners shown in bold, below)

Board of Selectmen

With Rich McCarty and David Tatkow winning seats on the Board of Selectmen, they’ll join fellow Democrat Ross Tartell. First Selectman Toni Boucher is a Republican, and after Nov. 19, she will be the lone Republican, as Second Selectman Josh Cole (R) announced his resignation effective that date. The Board has a limited 30-day window to fill Cole’s seat, and based on minority representation rules (C.G.S. 9-167a) the person who fills the vacancy must be a member of the same party as Cole.

This election creates an interesting situation in two aspects — it’s unlikely that the Democrats have ever held the majority on the Board of Selectmen, and their wins now put the first selectman in the minority party.

Board of Finance

In what may be the most surprising upset of the 2025 election, Matt Raimondi (R) ,the current chair of the Board of Finance, did not win re-election. Raimondi has put in an enormous effort to help bring order of Wilton’s finances following several sudden, high-profile departures at Town Hall, and he has helped increase transparency at times when information was not forthcoming from Town Hall. He also was instrumental in creating and running the town budget survey process each year, and he helped shore up a stronger relationship between the Boards of Finance and Education, making huge strides at reducing friction during the annual budget process.

The two Democrats who ran for the BOF — Eric Fanwick, who is finishing up his second term on the Planning and Zoning Commission; and newcomer Kari Roberts — will be first-timers on BOF.

Republican Kim Healy was one of the few members of her party running in this election to win a seat. Healy will be wrapping up her time on the Board of Selectmen, where she was a vocal presence in asking questions of First Selectman Boucher when information was not provided or projects hit operational snags. Healy is expected to increase her vigilance over accountability, transparency and diligent financial management from her seat on the BOF.

Their election will evenly split party affiliation on the BOF to 3-3: Fanwick and Roberts join current Democratic BOF member Tim Birch; Healy’s fellow Republicans currently on the board are Rudy Escalante and Prasad Iyer

What to watch for: No one who’ll be on the BOF as of Dec. 1 has much deep experience on the board. The three current members were all elected in 2023. So, it will be interesting to watch the board decide who will be chair.

Board of Education

With an uncontested race for the Board of Education, all three candidates will automatically be seated on the board, regardless of whether voters followed the same pattern seen in the other races. Already a board with a Democratic majority, including Chair Ruth DeLuca and member Pat Pearson, Shaner joins Republican Lori Bufano at the board table.

Planning and Zoning

This battle for seats may have been one that motivated many voters to come to the polls in Wilton, as not only did much of the discourse revolve around planning and zoning topics through the entire campaign season, it came up in races other than this one, with candidates for selectmen and finance talking about P&Z too.

This commission has been led by a Republican-endorsed member for years, and with the majority on this nine-person board shifting so dramatically, this outcome will have major reverberations. The five candidates who won seats join fellow Democrat Mark Ahasic, who is two years into his first term, for a shift in control that could have lasting impact. That may be an understatement, judging by the heightened tone of the disagreements in the press between current P&Z Chair Rick Tomasetti and the re-elected member Ken Hoffman in the week leading up to the election.

What to watch for: How selection for chair and vice-chair will go, and how the commission fills the seat vacated by Republican Chris Pagliaro, who moved out of Wilton, in the month before the election

Other Races

The other down-ballot races followed the same overall pattern, with large margins between the Democratic and Republican candidates.

Land Use Boards

Constables

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