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Record of Proceedings

Special Board of Alderman Meeting: Election Recounts (Nov 15, 2025)

Board of Aldermen Meetings — Saturday, November 15, 2025
BodyNashua, New Hampshire
SessionBoard of Aldermen Meetings
DateSaturday, November 15, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 29:49

Transcript — Verbatim
0:08

I am going to call the special meeting of the Board of Alderman to order on Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at 9 a.m.

0:15

in the City Hall Auditorium.

0:18

The prayer will be offered by City Clerk Dan Healy and Alderman Michael D.

0:22

O'Brien will lead us in the pledge to the flag.

0:26

Almighty God.

0:27

We have the high honor and the serious duty to manage the affairs of our beloved city.

0:33

Fill us, oh God, with a spirit of unity and understanding, which enables us to face our multiple problems with a serene mind with justice and charity for all, so that any and all decisions made by us will always be for the betterment and greater happiness of all our fellow citizens.

0:49

So help us God.

0:51

Amen.

0:52

I pledge an allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands for national liberty and justice for you don't want to hear it.

1:11

Oh, we can't see it here at all.

1:15

No, I can just do the okay.

1:17

Roll call.

1:19

Okay.

1:20

Could we be quiet?

1:22

In the room, please.

1:23

We need donuts.

1:24

Excuse me.

1:27

Could you keep the quote the talking down?

1:29

We're trying to run our meeting here.

1:31

Thank you.

1:32

Alderman O'Brien.

1:34

Present.

1:36

Alderman Greg.

1:37

Present.

1:38

Alderman Moran.

1:41

Aldman Thibodeau.

1:43

Here.

1:44

Aldman Govea.

1:46

Here.

1:47

Aldman Lopez.

1:51

Alderman Sullivan.

1:52

Here.

1:54

Aldman Clemens.

1:55

Here.

1:56

Alderman Senate.

1:58

Here.

1:59

Alderman Jetty.

2:01

Here.

2:02

Alderman Tebow.

2:04

Here.

2:06

Alderman Clee.

2:07

Here.

2:08

Alderman Dowd.

2:10

Resident.

2:11

Alderwoman Kelly.

2:12

Here.

2:13

Aldman Wilshire.

2:15

Here.

2:16

13 present, two absent.

2:18

Thank you.

2:19

Communications.

2:20

Communication has been received from Daniel Healy, City Clerk, regarding recount requests for Ward 1 Alderman, Ward 5 Alderman, and Ward 6 Alderman.

2:30

Without objection, I will accept the communication and place it on file.

2:34

Unfinished business resolution.

2:38

Third reading of R 25-21.

2:41

Relative to the supplemental appropriation of 148,035 and 89 cents of unanticipated revenue into fund number 7024 Opiate Abatement Expendable Trust Fund.

2:54

Alderman O'Brien.

2:56

I didn't get a script.

3:02

And for final passage.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Election Procedures████████████████████31%
Summary of Proceedings

Special Board of Alderman Meeting: Election Recounts (Nov 15, 2025)

The Board of Alderman convened a special meeting on Saturday, November 15, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. in the City Hall Auditorium to conduct recounts for the Aldermanic elections in Ward 1, Ward 5, and Ward 6. The primary agenda item involved the verification of vote counts via a recount request, supervised by the City Clerk, with final rulings on challenged ballots provided by the Board.

Consent Calendar

  • Resolution 25-21 was received for third reading regarding a supplemental appropriation of $148,035.89 from unanticipated revenue into the Opiate Abatement Expendable Trust Fund.
  • A clarification motion was made by Alderman O'Brien to correct the title of Resolution 25-21, which was initially incorrectly stated as referencing a horse trailer donation, to properly reflect the supplemental appropriation. Alderman O'Brien expressed the position that the title required this specific correction. The motion was adopted unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Candidates for the respective wards were present and permitted to observe the recount processes.
  • Candidates were granted specific positions as observers, with four observers permitted per candidate in the recount area.
  • No formal public testimony was delivered prior to the recount proceedings; discussions were limited to procedural inquiries by candidates and the Board.

Discussion Items

  • Recount Procedures: City Clerk Daniel Healy detailed the process for opening boxes, separating ballots (uncast, absentee, cast), and the two-person counting method using stacks of 25.
    • The Clerk noted that Ward 5's recount would commence after 10:00 a.m. and Ward 6's after 11:00 a.m.
    • The Clerk established a position that challenges to absentee envelopes were invalid as the deadline was election day, but challenges to the intent of the ballot itself were permissible during the recount.
  • Ward 1 Recount: The Board discussed the initial discrepancy between election night reports and recount totals (Chess: 979 vs 982; Gallagher: 942 vs 945).
    • Six challenge ballots were identified. Alderman O'Brien moved to accept the recount results after the challenges were resolved. All Board members supported the final tally.
  • Ward 5 Recount: The Board deliberated on the handling of 13 challenge ballots.
    • The Clerk expressed the position that the Board should rule on the intent of challenged ballots.
    • Alderman O'Brien and other members moved to recognize specific ballot intents (Paula Johnson and Justin Gerstenfield) based on the visual evidence. Candidates agreed to tally the remaining results without Board intervention.
    • A correction was noted where Paula Johnson's initial announced count of 634 was subsequently clarified to 635, matching election night figures.
  • Ward 6 Recount: The Board reviewed discrepancies where the recount count exceeded election night totals by one vote for each candidate (Thibodeau: 468 vs 469; Smith: 490 vs 491).
    • The Clerk explained that manual determination of voter intent could yield results different from machine counts, justifying the additional votes found.
    • Alderman Thibodeau (Chris Thibodeau) announced his recusal from ruling on Ward 6 ballots due to being a candidate, though he remained present. He expressed a position of non-participation in the ruling to ensure impartiality.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution 25-21: Declared duly adopted with the corrected title regarding the $148,035.89 supplemental appropriation.
  • Ward 1 Results Certified: Stephen Chess is declared the winner with 982 votes; Haley Gallagher placed second with 945 votes. (Motion to accept carried 13-0).
  • Ward 5 Results Certified: Paula Johnson is declared the winner with 635 votes; Justin Gerstenfield placed second with 610 votes. (Motion to accept carried 13-0).
  • Ward 6 Results Certified: Ivan Flet/Smith is declared the winner with 491 votes; Chris Thibodeau placed second with 469 votes. (Motion to accept carried 12-1, with Alderman Thibodeau abstaining due to recusal).
  • Certification Motion: The Board unanimously certified the recount results as read by the City Clerk and declared the candidates with the top votes as the official winners.
  • Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 3:38 a.m. (transcript timestamp discrepancy noted: meeting started 9:00 a.m. Saturday, adjournment listed as 3:38, likely intended as 3:38 p.m.), with no objection raised to the time.

Meeting Transcript

I am going to call the special meeting of the Board of Alderman to order on Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at 9 a.m. in the City Hall Auditorium. The prayer will be offered by City Clerk Dan Healy and Alderman Michael D. O'Brien will lead us in the pledge to the flag. Almighty God. We have the high honor and the serious duty to manage the affairs of our beloved city. Fill us, oh God, with a spirit of unity and understanding, which enables us to face our multiple problems with a serene mind with justice and charity for all, so that any and all decisions made by us will always be for the betterment and greater happiness of all our fellow citizens. So help us God. Amen. I pledge an allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands for national liberty and justice for you don't want to hear it. Oh, we can't see it here at all. No, I can just do the okay. Roll call. Okay. Could we be quiet? In the room, please. We need donuts. Excuse me. Could you keep the quote the talking down? We're trying to run our meeting here. Thank you. Alderman O'Brien. Present. Alderman Greg. Present. Alderman Moran. Aldman Thibodeau. Here. Aldman Govea. Here. Aldman Lopez. Alderman Sullivan. Here. Aldman Clemens. Here. Alderman Senate. Here. Alderman Jetty. Here. Alderman Tebow. Here. Alderman Clee. Here. Alderman Dowd. Resident. Alderwoman Kelly. Here. Aldman Wilshire. Here. 13 present, two absent.

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