Rebecca Haag, a stalwart figure in the Island’s nonprofit world, was slated to be the sole candidate to run for the select board in Chilmark. But in a last-minute twist to what’s been an uneventful election cycle, a new candidate has entered the race with a write-in campaign.
Chilmark residents recently received a letter from Katherine Carroll, president of the Menemsha Texaco, who serves various roles in town government including as chair of the Chilmark board of health, on Thursday asking for support in her bid for the select board through her write-in campaign in the annual town election on April 29. The select board seat up for re-election is currently held by Marie Larsen, who decided in January she would not be running for the position.
Although the March 11 due date for prospective candidates to pull nomination papers has already passed in Chilmark, residents can vote for someone not on the ballot by writing in a person’s name. That means Carroll’s name will not be on the ballot, and that she will have to get the word out for voters to write her in on the ballot.
Chilmark voters will have an opportunity to meet and ask questions of candidates during a forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Martha’s Vineyard. The event will be held at the Chilmark library on April 20 at 6 pm, and a recording will be available for viewing on the MVTV website. Haag is an official part of the forum program, and Carroll said she may have an opportunity to speak to voters.
Both Haag and Carroll sent letters to Chilmark households to introduce themselves as candidates and vie for support, emphasizing their deep connections to the community.
Haag wrote that she is running for select board to contribute to build community and help town residents. Haag has been a full-time Chilmark resident for 10 years, but has lived in the town on a part-time basis for 35 years. She also wrote that she spent the past 25 years managing nonprofit organizations, and has 25 years working in “various executive roles in the business world.” She came to the Island full-time to “contribute in some way,” which led her to take the helm of what may be her best-known role, as the longtime executive director of Island Grown Initiative, a position she held from 2016 to 2024 before retirement. Under Haag’s leadership, Island Grown Initiative expanded to include employee housing, a permanent home for its Food Pantry in Oak Bluffs, and made the nonprofit’s farm into a regenerative agricultural center, a farming method that prevents damage to the soil through the rotation of crops.
Haag is active on the Island in retirement. She currently chairs the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital board, and volunteers for Healthy Aging Martha’s Vineyard, driving local seniors to medical appointments and grocery stores. She also previously served on the board of the Martha’s Vineyard Agricultural Society, and judged the junior baking competition during the Ag Fair.
“As someone who wanders through Menemsha in January, swims at Lucy Vincent Beach, and walks the many beautiful trails, I feel an obligation to give back to the community,” Haag wrote of her decision to run for town office.
Carroll highlighted that as recently as a couple of weeks ago, she didn’t plan to run for the select board, but her friends had started a write-in initiative on her behalf. “I have accepted that call because I care deeply about the daily functioning of our town, and the well-being of everyone who lives here,” she wrote.
Carroll underscored that not only did she operate the Menemsha Texaco, she has served as a “civil servant who has quietly contributed [to] the town of Chilmark.” Caroll currently chairs the Chilmark board of health and the Chilmark historical commission, where she has held membership since 1998 and 2023, respectively. She is also assistant to the Chilmark fire chief, and a certified emergency responder. Carroll said in her letter to Chilmark residents that she “orchestrated” town guidelines and regulations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and facilitated “PFAS testing for private wells,” emphasizing that her years of experience would allow her to hit the ground running on the select board.
Carroll is also involved with various Island organizations, including as vice chair of the Martha’s Vineyard Bass & Bluefish Derby Committee, Chilmark Town Affairs Council member, and coordinator of the Adopt a Coastie program. She was also a founding member of the Chilmark Preschool and the Martha’s Vineyard Fishermen’s Preservation Trust.
Both candidates wrote about a need to preserve Chilmark as a place where residents can live and raise their families.
Haag highlighted that “challenges loom” for Chilmark, including insufficient affordable housing, weak phone signals, PFAS “endangering our water,” and public health threats of tick-borne diseases. Carroll said she would “treat our budget as a promise to future generations,” and be mindful of how town resources are spent, alongside being approachable to residents regarding community concerns.
Very few seats that are up for re-election this year are contested across the Island, where there aren’t many candidates despite big issues facing towns, like substantial overrides to cover expenses.
Among the 13 seats up for re-election on the Chilmark ballot, only the select board is now contested due to Carroll’s write-in candidacy. Nobody is running for the positions of tree warden, fence viewer, and surveyor of wood, lumber, and bark. There are also six ballot questions for voters to consider on the ballot, including whether cell towers should be allowed in Chilmark, and approval overrides totaling $367,964 to cover educational costs, a new full-time EMT, and extended hours for the town library.
Chilmark will hold its town election on April 29 at the Chilmark Community Center on 520 South Road, from noon to 8 pm.