Greenwich Republicans held a lengthy meeting on Tuesday night where they voted to endorse candidates in the November 4, 2025 municipal elections including the Board of Education and Board of Estimate and Taxation and Board of Selectmen.
The RTC announced their nominees in an email on Wednesday including five candidates for Board of Education.
The biggest surprise of the endorsements were two BET incumbents, Karen Fassuliotis and Leslie Tarkington not being renominated.
Board of Estimate and Taxation Candidates:
David Alfano*
Nisha Arora*
Sally Bednar
Harry Fisher*
Lucia Jansen*
Joe Pelligrino
Unlike Board of Education elections, the BET allows each party no more than six candidates for the six spots they can occupy on the board.
Newcomer Sally Bednar was endorsed, along with Joe Pellegrino who is a more familiar name given he served on the BET a decade ago and chaired its Budget Committee.
Bednar is a member of the RTM in District 6 and is a member and serves as secretary on Greenwich’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund Board. According to the explanos comments (page 2) for her nomination to the Trust, Bednar is a certified public accountant and has been a resident of Greenwich since 2016. She has a BA in economics from the University of California and a MBA from New York University.
Being sworn in at Greenwich Town Hall: Nisha Arora, Leslie Tarkington and Leslie Moriarty Jan 8, 2024 Photo: Leslie Yager
Leslie Tarkington, who currently chairs the BET budget committee, has served on the BET for almost two decades. In 2016 she was not endorsed by her party but petitioned her way onto the ballot and held onto her seat. In 2019 she was the highest vote-getter for her party.
Tarkington on Thursday said, “My BET record of service has positioned the town in a strong financial condition. The decisions the BET Republicans have made on supporting schools and services, improving buildings and infrastructure, and building and preserving our town’s financial services have enhanced our town’s status as the premiere community in Connecticut. At the same time, there has been restraint in mill rate increases to maintain an affordable Greenwich.
“I was not selected by the RTC to serve as a member of the 2026 – 2027 BET and to continue my goals to control the financial demands on Greenwich taxpayers, maintain the town’s infrastructure, and preserve the residential quality of life in Greenwich.”
The BET is comprised of 12 members – six from each party. The party whose candidates garner the most votes in total gets to choose the chair.
The Republicans received more votes overall in the last election, and Harry Fisher was selected chair after all six Democrats and two Republicans voted for him, while Nisha Arora was also nominated to serve as chair and four Republicans voted for her.
This chairmanship is significant because that person is empowered with the ability to cast a tie-breaking vote. In April Fisher’s tie-breaking vote meant the party-line vote to approve the $4+ million cut passed 7-6, after which the audience of public school parents erupted in chants of “Shame on You” and “Remember in November.”
Karen Fassuliotis was elected to both the BET vice chair and clerk positions in January 2024, having received the support of of all six BET Democrats. That same January night she was assigned by Mr. Fisher to chair multiple committees.
Ms Fassuliotis has some memorable moments on the BET including the night she held up the likeness of a credit card during a LWV debate two years ago, saying at the time, “Our opponents want an unlimited credit card, and propose expanding town services and expenditures in a huge spending spree.”
At a BET meeting in April Ms Fassuliotis had a strong disagreement with Mr. Fisher about whether to discuss a complaint directed at her Human Resources Committee by the Town Director of Human Resources and later told Elliot Alchek, who resigned from the committee, he was out of order for calling the committee “dysfunctional.”
Moments later Fassuliotis stood up and packed her materials, saying, “I’m leaving. This is ridiculous. To say that this is not political, you are absolutely out of your mind.”
Candidates for BET, David Alfano, Karen Fassuliotis with likeness of a credit card, and Lucia Jansen on Oct 18, 2023
In an email to GFP on Wednesday, Ms Fassuliotis responded to not having been nominated for another term on the BET.
“I am not surprised at the outcome last night given the deep divides that remain within the Republican party and, unfortunately, I was caught in the factional crossfire,” she wrote. “I have always stood up for our seniors and young families and those who cannot afford big tax bills, which is an unpopular position in parts of the Republican party. I’ve served for a long time in town government and am proud of what I have accomplished. I am now weighing my options with respect to a primary, which includes potentially petitioning to primary for a different position within our town government.”
After Greenwich Republican First Selectman Fred Camillo and Selectwoman Lauren Rabin addressed the crowd outside the Havemeyer building on Greenwich Avenue, Republican attendees gathered for group photos. July 14, 2025 Photo: Leslie Yager
Board of Education Candidates;
Dr. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony* (incumbent)
Paul Cappiali
Granit Balidemaj
Karen Krause
Shawn McDonnell
Unique to the BOE, as many as four candidates from one party can run for two seats.
There is also one opening to replace the remaining two years of Karen Kowalski’s term. Ms Kowalski resigned last summer citing a move out of town.
Dr. Mercanti-Anthony was nominated specifically for that two year seat, which was the position he actively sought.
“It’s a real honor to be the RTC nominee in the special election for the two-year seat,” he said in an email on Thursday. “I look forward to continuing to work towards increased student outcomes while managing fiscal responsibilities prudently.”
Last October, the BOE held an emergency meeting where they voted in Jen Behette to fill Kowalski’s seat. The next day, the Board of Selectmen voted 2-1 in favor of appointing Paul Cappiali to replace Kowalski.
Ms Behette has been recognized at meetings since then, though the situation is currently subject of a lawsuit between the town and the BOE.
Granit Balidemaj was in 2015 one of the youngest member of the RTM when, at 25, he filled a District 10 vacancy between elections. Interviewed at the time he talked about growing up helping at his father’s successful restaurant, Alba’s in Port Chester where many staff are family members and Albanian is spoken. Balidemaj, who is the first generation of his family to be born in the US, and said his father had been involved in local government in Montenegro.
Balidemaj served one term on RTM. In 2019, he was a candidate for Selectman. He is also a member of the RTC for district 10.
Shawn McDonnell is a former longtime Greenwich fire marshal and served on RTM in District 8.
Karen Krause is a newcomer to town government. She spoke passionately at a BOE meeting in April about the public schools budget, saying, “Of course no one wants to pay more in property taxes, but the mandated increases leave us no choice if we want to protect the general education for the 85% of students not in IEPs…Even if all we cared about was money, lower quality schools impact property values and ultimately tax receipts which fund a whole range of services for our town that benefit everyone.”
On Wednesday she issued a press release introducing herself, saying in part, “As an executive who possesses those capabilities, and as a parent of two Greenwich Public Schools students, I feel compelled to step up to provide the leadership and oversight our school district deserves.”
The RTC also endorsed four incumbents for re-election.
First Selectman: Fred Camillo
Selectwoman: Lauren Rabin
Town Clerk: Jackie Budkins
Tax Collector: Heather Smeriglio
Ms Smeriglio was the first to announce she intended to run for a fourth term.
Jackie Budkins announced next.
Lauren Rabin announced she would seek another term.
Finally, last week, Mr. Camillo announced on the steps of the Havemeyer building that he would seek a fourth term.
In their eblast on Wednesday, Greenwich Republicans wrote, “The RTC wishes to acknowledge all our members who have served Greenwich in leadership positions. Whether or not they continue to serve into the future, we are so grateful for their gift of themselves, their talent, and their time.”
This article was updated Thursday afternoon with statements from Leslie Tarkington and Dr. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony.