The Winthrop Town Council has appointed June Bubier to fill the council seat that opened when her late husband, David Bubier, died in January.
The councilors approved June Bubier’s appointment Tuesday night by unanimous vote at a special meeting. She will serve in the seat until June, when a longer-term replacement for her husband will be elected, according to a process laid out in the Town Charter.
The replacement who is elected this June will hold the council seat until December 2018, when David Bubier’s term was scheduled to end.
David Bubier, who owned and operated Baker’s Dozen Bait Shop with his wife, was midway through his council term when he died three weeks ago after a long fight with cancer.
“(David) was an extraordinary councilor,” Councilor Linda Caprara said. “I would like to honor his work, and I think June is very good and I think she’ll be a good fit for councilor. … She’s also a small-business person in the town, which I like because it brings a different perspective.”
The town chose June Bubier from a small pool of candidates who had expressed interest in filling the seat. Other Winthrop residents who submitted their names for consideration were Andy Wess, Andrew Bellegarde and Rita Moran.
Wess, who was at the Tuesday night meeting, said he didn’t know June Bubier was interested in the position when he submitted his name for consideration. But when he learned she was, he announced his support for her to fill her husband’s seat.
Several councilors at the meeting noted June Bubier’s qualifications, including past experience serving on the Budget Committee in Farmington.
“I like hearing about her experience on the Budget Committee,” Councilor Priscilla Jenkins said. “We need that type of expertise on the council.”
It was the second year in a row in which a widow replaced her husband on the Winthrop council. The same process played out in January 2016 when Ken Buck Sr. died and Barbara Buck assumed his seat on the seven-member council until the following June. She then was elected to serve the rest of his term and was re-elected last fall.
The special meeting originally had been scheduled for Monday but was postponed because of a snowstorm. The council requested last week that any candidates wishing to fill the seat contact Town Manager Peter Nielsen beforehand.
The council already has begun discussing next year’s budget and hoped to fill Bubier’s seat quickly so that all hands are on deck as the process ramps up in the winter and spring, Nielsen said last week.
Charles Eichacker — 621-5642
Twitter: @ceichacker
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Comments are no longer available on this story