MERRIMAC — An 18-year-old Merrimack College freshman sprinted to the front of a field of five candidates to become the town’s newest selectman Tuesday night.
Ben Beaulieu received 1,258 votes to lead his closest competitor, former Town Moderator Bob Bender, who collected 715, to succeed first-term Selectman Ralph Spencer, according to preliminary election results.
Beaulieu ran his first campaign race with a field that included Timothy David Boyd, Genevieve Donahue and Chris Manni, who received 454, 446 and 696 votes, respectively.
“I’m very happy and very excited that the town came out and we won 35% of the vote,” Beaulieu said. “I think that is symbolic of the fact that this town needs a new direction. They chose a candidate who may be younger but with the experience to do the job and the mindset to be dedicated and bring new ideas to the table.”
Beaulieu spent his junior and senior years in high school as the student representative to the School Committee in the Pentucket Regional School District.
He is expected to be sworn in at the Board of Selectmen’s next meeting. Although Beaulieu still lives with his parents, he said he is ready to sit on the board.
“I was born and raised here and I may be 18 years old, I may not be paying property taxes but I have bills and that doesn’t mean I’m not going to have a mortgage down the road,” Beaulieu said. “That is why I work so hard. I’d also like to thank the people who took a chance on me as an 18-year-old and someone who’s not paying property taxes but understands that I want to do everything that I can to help out the town.”
Beaulieu campaigned on a platform of common sense commercialization and said he is looking forward to working with board Chairman Joel Breen to come up with ideas for bringing new businesses to town.
“We’re going to do it with common sense and with respect to both sides of the argument,” Beaulieu said. “One of the ideas that I have had is turning the building that is sitting next to the old Police Department into something commercialized. It is just sitting there and has a prime parking area that also is located off the highway.”
While Beaulieu backed the successful effort to approve a Proposition 2½ override to build a $146.3 million middle/high school, he pointed to a more recent override proposal to pay for two police officers that failed last spring as a sign the tax base is reaching its breaking point.
“The overrides to fund the necessities that we need here in town I think are completely ridiculous,” he said. “That is why I am focused on bringing the other side of that, more tax dollars, into the town. I think that will help us out substantially.”
Beaulieu is majoring in communication at Merrimack College and is vice president of the newly established Rebel Media Group LLC, which focuses on websites, social media and digital radio.
Beaulieu said communication and good personal relationships in town were a key to his victory. He thanked the other candidates for running good races.
“I’ve known some of the people in this town my entire life and they have had my back for my entire life,” Beaulieu said. “Now, I am looking to have their back as their selectman.”
Staff writer Jim Sullivan covers Amesbury and Salisbury for The Daily News. He can be reached via email at jsullivan@newburyportnews.com or by phone at