I’m surprised this story hasn’t attracted more attention, but after presiding over elections in Newton for six years (and more than a little controversy), today is Craig Manseau’s last day as Executive Secretary of the Election Commission, the TAB’s Chloe Gotsis reports.
Newton election head Manseau’s leaving today
by Greg Reibman | Jan 18, 2013 | Newton | 13 comments
Don’t retirements take a long time to process in government? Can one really decide that quickly to retire? I’d think that if he needed to leave for a health reason he’d go out on disability and then retire.
I don’t buy it. There’s more to this story.
The retirement process in the public sector can be lengthy, but it is completely confidential. It’s up to the individual to decide when/how to disclose his/her plans to retire.
Everyone handles this transition in life differently – some people like a big party, but I’ve known teachers who announce their retirement to colleagues after the last day of school. I have no idea what the story is in this case, nor is it any of my business.
Best of luck to Mr. Manseau in the next phase of his life.
I’d accept that, Jane, if he were a teacher or a lower-level employee. But he’s the director of a department. And that department is going to oversee an election in less than two months. Why no information in Chloe’s story about a replacement? If he is retiring, a search would be in place.
It may be that I’ve crossed a personal boundary, and I do hope all is well with Craig. But if the secretary of the elections commissions retires suddenly, taxpayers should at least be assured that there’s a plan in place
What Gail said.
In many cities in MA, the City Clerks office handles elections (i.e. Waltham, Woburn, Lynn, Everett, Chelsea, Quincy). Perhaps to save taxpayer’s money, Newton could merge the Elections Department with the Clerk’s office.
I think this thread oversteps boundaries with the unspoken implication that an employee has done something inappropriate or is controversial (the link). The level of the employee’s position has nothing to do with the situation. Public employees have a right to privacy, and deciding when/how/why to retire is a private matter.
The issues you raise – whether there’s a plan in place for the upcoming election or plan for a search for Mr. Manseau’s replacement – are separate questions, and are matters that need answers. As I recall, we had an interim Election Commissioner in place for about 6 months in 2007/8 and everything was fine.
@Jane: Being in public service does come with an expectation of public scrutiny. The timing and scarcity of details does leave a lot to be desired.
As for matter involving Manseau’s department when Jonathan Yeo’s moved between wards, I don’t think anyone who is familiar with the matter would deny that it was “controversial,” even if folks differ whether or not Manseau’s department did anything questionable.
BTW, I didn’t interact with him often but I always found him easy to work with and quite responsive.
As one of the many poll workers, I’m concerned that this is abrupt enough that the executive hasn’t already started talking about Manseau’s replacement–at least to my knowledge. We have at LEAST two elections this year, and that office does a lot of work!
I’m not surprised there is considerable interest to ensure a smooth transition of this important position– I’m happy to report that Newton has secured the services of Peter Koutoujian, Sr. to execute the Executive Secretary’s duties starting on Tuesday, January 22nd. Peter has stepped in to transition this position a couple times in the past here in Newton, and brings a wealth of skills in this area to include over 20 yrs as City Clerk and Director of Elections in Waltham. We’re grateful for his continued public service and are confident Newton won’t miss a beat.
— City of Newton’s Chief Operating Officer
thanks for the comment Bob.
My understanding is that Peter Koutujian Sr is the interim director.
Peter Koutoujian Sr. did an outstanding job as an interim Election Commissioner in 2007/08 after a very serious controversy in the department. He was steady, fair, incredibly knowledgeable to everyone and oversaw several elections that proceeded without hitch. Newton is fortunate that he has agreed to another interim appointment.
Greg-I suspect that few among us would be happy to have one controversy define an entire career. 😉
In the case of the so-called “controversy” over Yeo’s skirting our election laws, I would think Manseau would be quite happy to have his career defined by the incident.
Manseau acted professionally and ethically and interpreted the law as anyone would who wasn’t a crass political opportunist.