Hampton selectmen candidates weigh in on Facebook posts controversy
HAMPTON — The four selectmen candidates running for two seats on the board in the town's March 9 election answered questions from the public Monday, including whether elected officials should be held to a higher standard for posts they make on social media.
The selectmen's race features incumbents Mary-Louise Woolsey and Jim Waddell, along with former state rep. Sharleen Page Hurst and retired Hampton police chief Richard Sawyer. All four participated in a virtual Zoom video conference candidates night hosted by the Hampton PTA.
The question regarding social media was in response to a non-binding petition article on the March 9 ballot calling for selectmen to add a social media policy and to create an ethics committee to field complaints from residents. A group of Hampton residents put forward the petition citing Selectman Regina Barnes’ political posts made on Facebook and Twitter that some, including Black Lives Matter Seacoast, have called offensive.