Chuck Booty, left, lets Brookfield Trustee Ron Haun know the way things are at the polls Nov. 5. Haun was reelected to a fourth term.
Brookfield voters re-elected Trustee Ron Haun, chose Melissa A. Sydlowski and Sarah Kurpe for the school board and voted down a school levy for the third straight election.
Haun easily outdistanced challengers Clifford B. Elliott Jr. and Mark Syersak, earning 1,135 votes to Syersak’s 527 and Elliott’s 426, according to official tallies certified by the Trumbull County Board of Elections on Nov. 22. Haun was the top vote-getter in each of Brookfield Township’s seven precincts.
“I’m grateful that the people of the township put their faith in me,” said Haun, who was picked for a fourth, four-year term.
Haun said he has a record to run on and knows that that is not always a good thing in some people’s eyes.
“I just want to show them that we can come together in a team attitude and continue to move forward with common goals,” he said, referring to Trumbull County being awarded a Neighborhood Revitalization Grant to pave streets, build sidewalks, replace storm sewers and build a park in Masury as an example. The project originated with township officials, and local residents played key roles in collecting the information needed for the grant application.
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Sydlowski pulled in 1,109 votes to Kurpe’s 1,066 and Mark Ferrara’s 1,005.
“I am thankful to the community for their belief in me as shown by the voting outcome,” Sydlowski said. “I’m excited to serve on the board and truly hope that my future decisions will best benefit the students, staff, and community. I look forward to developing relationships with the other board members and working with them to make Brookfield Schools the best district for our kids that it can be.”
Kurpe called the results “pretty exciting.”
Melissa Sydlowski, left, and Sarah Kurpe are shown at the November meeting of the Brookfield Board of Education, the first one following their elections to the board. The ladies will be sworn in in January.
She said she believes the district is “going in the right direction,” but the failure of the levy shows “that there’s a disconnect there.”
“That won’t make it any easier going into this job,” she said.
Kurpe pledged to approach her four-year term with the same sense of transparency, honesty, openness and optimism that she would wish of a school board member.
“I’m definitely in the trenches and not going anywhere,” she said.
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The school referendum, a 1 .9-mill, five-year permanent improvement levy, went down 1,255-923.
“Of course, the results are not what we were hoping they would be,” said school Supt. Toby Gibson. “However, we are appreciative of the support we did receive. Since coming on board as superintendent, it has been my priority to foster relationships with members of the community. I am committed to continuing those conversations as we move forward. Our community feedback is very important to us as we look to address the needs in our district.”
The district is seeking input in a survey that records voters’ thoughts on the referendum. It was the third straight election that the question had failed. The survey can be accessed through the district’s Facebook page, but Gibson said he is looking to get it circulated among people who aren’t on Facebook.
Gibson added that he wants to involve the new board members in discussions about whether the school tries again for a levy.
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Brookfield, Masury and Yankee Lake voters also gave their positions on two other levy referendums.
Warren-Trumbull County Public Library asked for a 0.4-mill additional levy, and it passed countywide 15,482-10,750, although Brookfield, Masury and Yankee Lake voters cast more no votes (1,102) than yes votes (1,059.)
A Trumbull County Senior Services renewal of a 0.75-mill levy overwhelmingly passed in the county, 29,736-8,679, and in Brookfield, Masury and Yankee Lake, 1,497-669.
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Following are the turnout figures for Brookfield Township and Yankee Lake from the Nov. 5 election. Yankee Lake voters are included in Precinct A.
Registered voters Ballots cast Turnout percentage
Precinct A 917 378 41.2
Precinct B 761 301 39.6
Precinct D 819 202 24.7
Precinct E 811 303 37.4
Precinct H 775 344 44.4
Precinct K 1,013 470 46.4
Precinct L 543 190 35
Totals 5,639 2,188 38.8
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Following are the official vote totals in the Nov. 5 election for Brookfield Township trustee. One seat was open.
Ronald E. Haun Mark Syersak Clifford B. Elliott Jr.
Precinct A 183 89 91
Precinct B 161 74 58
Precinct D 105 57 35
Precinct E 151 65 73
Precinct H 146 113 58
Precinct K 299 92 62
Precinct L 90 37 49
Totals 1,135 527 426
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Following are the official vote totals from the Nov. 5 election for Brookfield Board of Education. Two seats were up for grabs.
Melissa A. Sydlowski Sarah Kurpe Mark Ferrara
Precinct A 193 187 165
Precinct B 130 143 171
Precinct D 111 91 95
Precinct E 159 142 127
Precinct H 175 157 145
Precinct K 237 261 221
Precinct L 104 85 81
Totals 1,109 1,066 1,005
Editor’s note: Yankee Lake voters are represented in Precinct A.
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Following are the official vote totals from the Nov. 5 election for the Brookfield Local School District seeking a 1.9-mill, five-year permanent improvement levy.
For Against
Precinct A 127 250
Precinct B 130 171
Precinct D 97 104
Precinct E 141 159
Precinct H 128 215
Precinct K 220 248
Precinct L 80 108
Totals 923 1,255
Editor’s note: Yankee Lake voters are reflected in Precinct A.
