Rachel Rochette Named Mayor in First Meeting Under New Council

Meet your new mayor, Berlin.

Rachel Rochette made the leap from deputy mayor to mayor on Tuesday after members of the council voted unanimously to name her as the successor to Adam Salina, who retired following the previous council meeting.

Rochette, who abstained from voting herself, watched as Republicans and Democrats eventually agreed by a 6-0 vote to appoint her to the ceremonial position. Newcomer Kevin Murphy, the highest vote getter among the Democrats, was named deputy mayor.

"I am honored to be selected by my colleagues on the council," Rochette said. "As we look to the next two years, I know there is much work to be done and I promise all Berlin citizens that I will work to the best of my ability to move our community forward."

"I am looking forward to serving with the six other councilors sitting beside me. I'm sure that we will work together openly, honestly and in good faith to continue to make Berlin a better community," she said.

Rochette said she would work to provide continued open communication with the public, introducing an idea for a Thursday evening "Meet the Councilors" that she hopes to have in place before the end of the year.

The vote came after a nomination from Murphy - but not before Brendan Luddy nominated Murphy first, citing that he was the top vote getter from the minority party.

"A lot of messages could be pulled from this election. Three of four top vote getters were new people and in keeping with past tradition, I believe we should be selecting the top vote getter from the majority party," Luddy said.

Murphy, however, politely declined and said the town would benefit more from having an experienced council member at the helm.

"This is not about me, this is about this town," Murphy said in his nomination of Rochett. "Rachel has the experience to lead this town through difficult times."

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