To the Editor:

Thank you for providing candidate statements for the May 20 Town Elections. This give voters a sense of each candidate’s motivation and potential to serve, and provides a window into their experience. We are fortunate to have several prospective Planning Board members, some with previous experience in town planning, zoning or related fields. At the local level the candidates have volunteered in a wide variety of organizations: coaching sports, library trustee, food bank, humane society, marathon committee, historical society, etc. These candidates have served the community well.

When voting in local, statewide or national elections, I would urge voters to ask themselves these questions:

• Does the candidate have previous experience in government (or private sector) commensurate with the demands of the office they seek?
• Does the candidate have good people skills, listening to and respecting different viewpoints, and finding win/win solutions and helping create unity in their town/district/state/nation?
• Has the candidate been generous with their time, sacrificing personal/family time to contribute to their community?

The last question is instrumental, as elected officials are there to serve the public. Previous demonstration that they value public service and community building over personal gain is an important attribute for our elected officials.

A final thought: Given the strong credentials of some of our local candidates (previous job experience and demonstration of volunteerism and public service) one must wonder why voters do not demand the same of our next president.

— Douglas Antelman, Hopkinton