Turnout Reportedly Slower for Chappaqua School Elections

Turnout for the Chappaqua school district's elections was reported to be light.

District Clerk Theresa Markley said that as of 4 p.m. there were about 650 voters, a significant drop from roughly 900 that voted at the same point last year. However, it is still an improvement from 2009 - board member Alyson Kiesel ran unopposed that year for one seat, just as this year - with about 453 having voted at the same point in the day.

The gym served as the district's only polling place, and residents of both viewpoints on the budget could be found.

"It's a reasonable budget," said Yushih Liu, who voted for the budget and felt that it is good for the community.

Rebecca Fierro, a long-time resident of the area, voted against the budget, with taxes being her concern. Fierro would like to see tax relief for older residents and feels that the current tax levy cap - it's 2 percent this year but the proposed levy exceeds it due to exemptions - doesn't go far enough.

One unusual element this year is the fact that there is nobody on the ballot for the Library Board of Trustees, due to the lack of people filing before the April 16 deadline. However, write-in votes are being accepted.