A longtime Hampden town councilor will serve as mayor for the coming year, after fellow councilors chose her for the job on Monday.
Shelby Wright, an at-large member, is serving her third non-consecutive term on the council but she has not served as mayor before.
Another at-large member, Eric Jarvi, was elected deputy mayor for the second year in a row. He is serving his first term on the council and will chair meetings when Wright is unable to attend.
The titles are honorary. Wright said Tuesday that she will chair council and other meetings and work with town staff to set agendas.
Wright and Jarvis both had opponents. Mark Cormier and Allen Esposito, who were elected to the council in November, nominated themselves for mayor and deputy mayor respectively.
Cormier and Esposito, along with Christine Cumberley and Peter Erickson, were sworn in at the beginning of Monday’s meeting.
All but Cormier, who served from 2016 through 2018, are new to the council. They were elected in November from the town’s four districts after none of the incumbents sought reelection.
The terms of at-large members Wright, Jarvi and Ivan McPike expire at the end of 2021.