LETTER TO THE MARBLEHEAD EDITOR: Vote Yes on Article 42
Wicked Local
The Marblehead Board of Selectman has a very unique service format – a one-year term. No other Select Board or School Committee we know of has a 1-year term. In fact, even multi-generation Marbleheaders often seem surprised by this fact. The inevitable question is, “Why, that sounds crazy? Why not the usual 3-year staggered term?”
No one really knows why, but the reasons generally given are tradition and the ability for the voters to “Throw the bums out.” Or maybe in 1649, when the Selectman first met, a one-year commitment was plenty given a 38-year average life span.