It is election season in many Massachusetts cities and towns. The smart candidates have started early because COVID-19 is making retail politics more difficult.
There will be a new New Bedford at-large council member elected next year. Long-time councilor Deb Coelho is retiring and that means a new councilor in 2021.
The battle over the residency requirement for some city employees has been picked up by former city council candidate Lisa White in the form of a petition.
It was another year of low voter turnout in New Bedford, with 9.5 percent of registered voters casting 5,618 ballots, the same turnout as in the 2017 preliminary.