Burkittsville elects two newcomers to Town Council; new mayor wins unopposed
Jun. 7—Burkittsville voters on Monday selected one incumbent and two new members to the three-member Town Council.
Also, the town will have a new mayor for the first time in 15 years. Michael Robinson, running unopposed, will succeed Mayor Deborah Burgoyne — "which, believe me, the town needs," Burgoyne said in a phone interview Monday.
"I'm aging out," Burgoyne said, adding that it's time for a younger crowd to lead the town. She has run unopposed for the position five times.
Five candidates ran for the town's three council seats.
Local farmer John "Jad" Drake, the lone incumbent in the field for Town Council, was the lead vote getter with 45. Council members Kathy Ahalt and Todd Remaley did not run for reelection.
Chuck Rounds, also a farmer, received 42 votes, and Matt Morris, a retiree and artist, received 33.
The new council will be the first in years with three men. The current council has two men and one woman. The one before that had two women and one man, Burgoyne said.
The two others candidates in this year's election, Jillian Savage and Paul Gilligan, garnered 28 and 17 votes, respectively. Gilligan was mayor from 1995 to 1998.
Burkittsville has not had a contested Town Council election in six years, Burgoyne said. Three candidates ran for the three town council seats in each of the previous two cycles, so the town didn't hold an election. Burgoyne did not have an opponent for mayor in any of her five campaigns.
Voters could select up to three council candidates on their ballots Monday. Some people voted for two candidates or just one, Town Clerk Michelle Jones said.
Burgoyne said 131 people could have voted in the election. Fifty-three people voted, for a turnout of 40%.
Town residents visited St. Paul's Lutheran Church on Main Street between 2 and 7 p.m. to cast their ballots. The votes were tallied within a few minutes.
Robinson and the three council members will serve three-year terms, starting with the council's next scheduled meeting in July.
"I don't want to rock the boat," said Robinson, an assistant director of customer service for College Board, a New York-based organization that administers standardized tests such as the SAT. "I want to keep Burkittsville Burkittsville."
Robinson said his top priority as mayor will be ensuring that a new visitor center is open in time for the town's bicentennial in 2024.
The town has been planning for years to establish a visitor center, Robinson said. He said it would be a place for people to learn about the town's history, including its reputation as the location for the fictional film series that started with "The Blair Witch Project."
"We can't ignore the fact that people come here because of the movie," Robinson said.
He wants people who go to Burkittsville because of the movie to learn about other aspects of the town's history when they enter the visitor center.
Serving as mayor "seemed like a new challenge," Robinson said, adding that he wants to represent the town as long as voters will allow him to.
Robinson was born in Hampton, Virginia. He and his family have lived in Burkittsville since 2017.
They lived in Brunswick for 11 years prior but frequented Burkittsville because Robinson's sister-in-law lived in town, he said. He and his family enjoyed Burkittsville and decided to move when they had the chance.
Follow Jack Hogan on Twitter: @jckhogan
