MADISON — Voters will consider six candidates in contested races for the Board of Selectmen and the school board during municipal elections Tuesday.

In the selectmen’s race, Travis Andrews, Cyprien Johnson and incumbent Albert Veneziano are competing for a pair of three-year terms.

In the school board race, incumbent Michael Edgerly, Robert Hagopian and incumbent Jeffrey Wright are running to fill two seats, also for three-year terms.

Polls are scheduled to be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Town Office, on Weston Avenue. The business portion of the annual Town Meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday in the Madison Junior High School auditorium.

Board of Selectmen

Andrews, 43, is a transport deputy sheriff with the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department and former Bingham selectman. He said he has lived in Madison for five years with his wife and two children.

Andrews said if elected, he would like to work on fiscal responsibility and full disclosure of information to the public.

“I know that with the state funding formula and the loss of the town of Athens from our school district we will likely be facing cuts, and I’d like to make sure we can do that without adversely affecting our kids,” he said.

He also said he would like to make information more available to the public, whether by posting meeting minutes online promptly or posting videos of meetings online.

“I think one of the most important things we can do as selectmen is get people involved,” he said.

Andrews has been a union member with experience in negotiating contracts and has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Maine, both of which he said qualify him for the job.

Johnson, 52, is a self-employed contractor at Cyp Johnson Heating. He moved to Madison two years ago with his wife, Cindy.

He said that although he is new to town, his experience of serving two terms on the Skowhegan Board of Selectmen makes him a good candidate. One thing he would like to do is collaborate with Skowhegan to make equipment and public works purchases, Johnson said.

He said he also is looking forward to facilitating plans to install a natural gas pipeline, which he thinks would help improve the town’s infrastructure. For example, new sidewalks could be laid after the pipe, he said.

“Overall, I hope to minimize unnecessary spending. I know that for a lot of people, especially older people nearing retirement age, reducing taxes is important,” he said.

Johnson has been a member of the Skowhegan Madison Elks Lodge for 35 years and was the director of the Skowhegan Chamber of Commerce and on the executive board of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension.

Veneziano, 53, is a mathematics and social studies teacher at Madison Junior High School and coaches girls basketball and softball at the high school. He is serving his third term as a selectman and said he is interested in continuing progress on the natural gas pipeline if re-elected.

“I think it will be a big boost for the area, and I want to make sure it is accessible to our businesses such as Backyard Farms and Madison paper as well as the community,” Veneziano said.

He also said he wants to finish the parking lot and playground project on Main Street and encourage people to volunteer for town committees.

Veneziano said he is a volunteer for Anson Madison Days and a member of the Skowhegan-Madison Elks Lodge and the Madison Knights of Columbus. As a selectman, he is a representative on the Madison Recycling Committee.

School Administrative District 59 Board of Directors

Edgerly, 39, is a manager at RTD Roofing and has three children enrolled in the district. He is finishing his first school board term and said he has been glad to work with the board on many positive changes over the last three years.

“I think the board as a whole has done a good job, especially with keeping the budget reasonable,” he said.

Edgerly said he attended school in Madison from kindergarten through grade 12 and he also coaches youth sports for the town recreation department.

“I enjoy being around students and the faculty and being a part of the school activities,” he said.

Hagopian, 66, is the owner of Economy Trophy in Madison as well as a former teacher and distrct transportation director. He was a junior high school teacher for 33 years from 1976 until 2009, was director of transportation for three years, and coached various sports including cross-country, girls basketball and track and field, he said.

He said that if elected, he would like to help guide the district through funding changes the state is proposing, such as shifting teacher retirement costs to local districts. At the same time, he said, he would like to find ways to maintain a school budget without cutting teaching positions or programs.

“I think that with my teaching experience and time spent in the district, I can bring a lot to the table,” he said.

Hagopian is seeking his first term on the board but previously was a selectman for more than a decade, ending in 2012.

Wright, 50, is an equipment operator for the Madison Highway Department and has two children enrolled in the district. He is finishing his first term on the board and and said he hopes to see positive change if re-elected. He declined to comment further about his candidacy.

Other offices

In uncontested races, Cathy Wilson is running for a three-year term on the Board of Assessors, Glen E. Mentor for a one-year term as road commissioner, Kathy L. Estes for a one-year term as town clerk and treasurer, Robert Hagopian for a three-year term on the Anson-Madison Sanitary District Board of Trustees, Richard Bartlett for a five-year term on the Madison Electric Works Board of Directors, Ann Heald for a five-year term on the Madison Public Library Board of Trustees, Howard Daigle for a one-year term on the Madison Public Library Board of Trustees and Lisa Wright for a three-year term on the Anson-Madison Water District Board of Trustees.

Rachel Ohm — 612-2368
rohm@mainetoday.com