Two candidates with a similar background in state and local civic service but with differing political views are jousting for the District 2 Hillsborough County Commissioner seat in the upcoming election. Republican Sandra Ziehm, a self-described fiscal and social conservative, is looking to unseat two-term incumbent Michael Clemons, a Democrat who labels himself a moderate, to represent the district that includes Nashua, Hudson, Hollis and Pelham for the next two years. Ziehm, 67, a 40-year Nashua resident who owns Harmony Real Estate in Hudson, said she brings to the table “many years of experience with multimillion dollar budgets,” which would give her “a very good handle on managing the county’s $87 million budget.” Clemons, 64, a Nashua native and career educator, said everyone, most importantly the district’s constituents, fare the best when members of different political parties agree to work together on issues. He points to several accomplishments – including the implementation of mental health courts in Nashua and Manchester and convincing the state to fund asbestos-abatement renovations at Manchester’s county courthouse – by the one-Democrat, two-Republican board in his four years. “I’ve helped save the taxpayers of this county literally hundreds of thousands of dollars in the four years I’ve been there,” Clemons said. “The mental health courts keep the jail population down, which saves tax dollars, and (the commissioners’ success in) pushing the state to repair the courthouse saves the taxpayers from potential future litigation.” Clemons, who ran unopposed in the September primary, said he and his counterparts typically agree to put service before politics.

View full post on All Stories