Oakland voters Tuesday elected Rick Stubbert to a third straight term on the Regional School Unit 18 board of directors, and Richard MacKenzie and Justin Richard captured spots on Oakland’s budget and advisory committee.
Rick Stubbert
Stubbert, 51, defeated Tyler Backus, 42, in a 1,684-1,452 vote to capture his third straight three-year term. Stubbert, who is the RSU 18 board’s vice chairperson, is also Oakland’s deputy police chief and the father of two school-age daughters.
Stubbert previously said he hoped to expand extracurricular activity options for all students and continue to help put the district in the best position possible during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I am very honored to be elected for a third term,” Stubbert said Wednesday. “My goals still haven’t changed with the extracurriculars, but that’s secondary to getting through COVID and keeping kids safe and providing them an education which is going to get more challenging as COVID gets worse. That’s the big thing, but I’m excited to get back at it.”
Stubbert will continue to represent Oakland on the 10-member RSU 18 committee.
Only two candidates were running for three positions on the budget and advisory committee. MacKenzie, 62, collected 2,447 votes, followed by 22-year-old Justin Richard with 1,898. MacKenzie is the founding owner of Oakland-based Construction Consulting of Maine.
Richard was not contacted by Wednesday night.
Richard MacKenzie. Courtesy photo.
Justin Richard. Courtesy photo
“I have no agenda that I bring to this committee,” MacKenzie wrote in an email Wednesday. “Oakland has a history of fiscal responsibility, and I hope to bring to the table some bit of experience that can provide continuity to this approach to the budget process.”
He previously served on Oakland’s long-range planning committee for 10 years and has been on the facilities commission since 2015. MacKenzie also has participated in activities with the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce.
Oakland voters also approved the town’s new comprehensive plan in a 3,150-353 vote. Robert Nutting, who chaired Oakland’s Comprehensive Planning Committee, received 3,130 votes to defend an unopposed town council seat.
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