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Sag Harbor School District Budget Passes; Coen and Reed Win Board Seats By Wide Margin

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Votes being tallied at Sag Harbor Budget Vote and board of ed election. DANA SHAW PHOTOS

Votes being tallied at Sag Harbor Budget Vote and board of ed election. DANA SHAW PHOTOS

From left, Janice D'Angelo and Heather Hartstein lost the race for board seats by a wide margin.

From left, Janice D'Angelo and Heather Hartstein lost the race for board seats by a wide margin.

Ron Reed won a seat on the Sag Harbor Board of Education.

Ron Reed won a seat on the Sag Harbor Board of Education.

Grainne Coen won a seat on the Sag Harbor Board of Education.

Grainne Coen won a seat on the Sag Harbor Board of Education.

Sag Harbor residents elected Grainne Coen and Ron Reed to the two open seats on the district’s school board. DANA SHAW

Sag Harbor residents elected Grainne Coen and Ron Reed to the two open seats on the district’s school board. DANA SHAW

authorCailin Riley on May 17, 2022

In one of the most highly anticipated board of education races on the East End this year, Sag Harbor residents elected Grainne Coen and Ron Reed to the two open seats on the district’s School Board.

They defeated Janice D’Angelo and Heather Hartstein by a wide margin, with Coen — the only candidate who submitted a nominating petition and appearing on the ballot — taking 883 votes, and Reed, who launched a write-in campaign and ran alongside Coen, garnering 733 votes.

D’Angelo and Hartstein, who aligned for write-in campaigns, garnered 186 and 179 votes, respectively.

The $45.9 million budget passed easily as well, 911-197.

Proposition 2, which will enable the district to use reserve funds to do unit ventilator upgrades in all three buildings, also passed easily, 961-143.

A total of 1,108 votes were cast, 59 of which were absentee. It was a high turnout, especially compared to recent years, but not unprecedented. The pandemic naturally caused a drop in voter turnout, and turnout was low for the 2018-19 vote, with only 515 ballots cast, but 1,242 votes were cast in 2017-18, and 1,324 in 2016-17.

The new board of education members expressed their thoughts at their win on Wednesday morning.

“I’m so grateful to the Sag Harbor community for all of their support,” Coen said on Wednesday morning. “It was great to see such increased engagement with the election, and I’d like to say well done to all of the candidates who participated. It will be a privilege to have the opportunity to serve the community and our wonderful school district.”

Reed expressed similar sentiments.

“I am thrilled we had a great turnout and I am looking forward to serving the Sag Harbor school community and working with the board members,” he said. “Thank you to all who came and supported us through the campaign.”

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