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HOLYOKE — A city councilor and a town administrator will face off to become Holyoke’s next mayor after winning a tight preliminary election on Tuesday.
Councilor Michael Sullivan and Joshua Garcia, the town administrator of Blandford, prevailed in a crowded field of seven candidates that emerged after Mayor Alex B. Morse announced in January that he would not run for reelection. He resigned two months later after being hired as the town manager in Provincetown.
Unofficial results show Michael Sullivan as the top vote-getter in the race, receiving 1,413 ballots and Garcia received 1,127 votes.
The race was close, with candidates jockeying back and forth as different precincts reported results Tuesday night. At one time Garcia and opponent Rebecca Lisi, another city councilor, were just 1 vote apart. In the end, Garcia prevailed over Lisi by 111 votes.
