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WESTFORD — Westford has made its voice heard with a strong turnout in both the midterm election and Special Town Election.
Who will be representing Westford?
Rep. James Arciero will begin his eighth term on Beacon Hill, securing 7,109 total votes in Westford. Challenger Raymond Xie secured 3,807 votes from Westford residents.
Freshman incumbent John Cronin, whose district now includes Westford, secured 6,489 votes to Republican challenger Kenneth Hoyt, who won 4,191 votes from Westford residents.
What won in Westford?
Westford voters were presented with six ballot initiatives. Four questions were presented on the state ballot, and two on the local ballot.
Local ballot initiatives
On the local ballot, 6,539 voters supported Question 2, which creates a Proposition 2 1/2 debt exclusion for the recently funded $32 million J.V. Fletcher Library expansion project. 4,154 voters voted against creating a debt exclusion for the project.
51 Main St., which failed to secure funding at an Oct. 17 Special Town Meeting, failed to capture a majority of voters to authorize a Proposition 2 1/2 debt exclusion for the project.
5,019 voters supported creating a debt exclusion for the project, while 5,489 voters opposed the initiative.
State ballot trends
On the state ballot, Westford residents bucked state-wide trends and rejected Question 1, which would create an additional 4% tax on income over $1 million in Massachusetts.
The measure was rejected by 222 votes in Westford, with 5,111 voting in favor of the measure and 5,333 voting against the measure. The measure ultimately passed statewide.
Westford residents supported Question 2, which would regulate dental insurers to provide a certain level of funding for care. 7,608 residents supported Question 2, while 2,823 opposed the measure. The measure passed statewide.
Westford residents opposed Question 3, which would have created new regulations for alcohol licensing. 4,628 residents voted in favor of the proposed regulations, while 5,669 residents opposed the measure. The measure failed statewide.
Westford residents supported Question 4, which would uphold a recent law removing citizenship requirements from a state license application. 5,468 residents voted in favor of upholding the law, while 4,996 residents opposed the measure. The measure passed statewide.
How many voters participated?
Of the 18,240 registered voters in Westford, 11,082 cast a ballot in this year’s election, marking an approximately 60% total voter turnout.
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