The four-way race for two Wiscasset school committee seats June 10 wound up close for three of the candidates. In results Town Clerk Linda Perry provided, Douglas Merrill got 243 votes, Christopher Hart 230, Laura Mewa 226 and Richard Lutes 83.

Neither Jason Putnam nor Jodi Hardwick sought new terms.

For two selectboard seats up for election, Terry Heller did not seek a new term and Pamela Dunning did. Dunning got 341 votes and the other candidate on the ballot, Alissa Eason, got 332.

For two water district trustee seats, the lone candidate on the ballot, Brandon Delano, got 388 votes. David Sawyer received seven write-in votes.

And the school budget offer lost 281-206. Asked for comment and what happens next, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kim Andersson said, "I view (the results) as an opportunity for our new School Committee to coalesce around the revision of our FY 26 budget and enable a positive start to the new year. I am grateful for the opportunity for another revision."

Andersson added about the process,  "We have been down this road before. The first year of (Regional School Unit) RSU 12 took three rounds of budget meetings and validation votes to pass a budget. The bright side is we will get a chance to revise the budget and I believe another revision will lead to a greater outcome for the new year. This is an opportunity to address the doubts raised by some ... (and) move forward in a positive fashion. The downside: The process is time-consuming and has additional, unbudgeted, costs. I will reach out to the Town Manager to get an estimate of what that cost is."

Andersson said the budget validation referendum pertained to "the 11 cost centers, EPS-required local contribution, additional local funds, and total budget." She said the adult education, reserve funds,and use of additional subsidy "were approved at the April 29 town meeting and do not need to be voted on again. This means that the capital improvements planned, including the new WMHS (Wiscasset Middle High School) gym floor and bleachers, are still on."

What's next? Andersson said, "Within 10-45 days, the new school committee will create and adopt another budget revision ... and host a special town meeting to have the constituents adopt or revise that budget. The budget adopted ... will then need to be voted on at a special budget validation referendum. This process repeats until a budget is passed. If no budget passes by July 1, the budget adopted April 29 goes into effect."

The lone rejected item in the municipal budget June 10 was $4,225 for Waldo County Community Action Partners. Voters supported expanding the Water District's service territory to include all of Edgecomb, 247-200; however, the straw vote on the same question lost in Edgecomb last month with 102 votes for and 165 against, according to Boothbay Register/Wiscasset Newspaper files; as reported, the district got legislative approval last year for expansion, and has three years to get voter approval in Edgecomb and Wiscasset.

See the attachment to this article for complete results of Wiscasset's voting.