Was Jennifer Pelavin’s Election Legal?
Preliminary Research by Gardner Magazine indicates that the recent vote of the Gardner City Council to elect Jennifer Pelavin City Clerk effective July 6th may have been illegal. It is our understanding that both a City Council member and/or a School Committee member must first resign their position and then wait 30 days before accepting any municipal position.
Jennifer Pelavin was at the School Committee meeting on June 8, 2026. The earliest date she could have resigned would have been the next day or June 9th , and if our information is correct, she wouldn’t have been eligible for the position until 30 days later in July. As far as we know, Pelavin was still a School Committee member on June 15th and was thus not eligible for any job working for the City. The City Clerk is a paid City of Gardner position. The Big Question: Because Pelavin did not accept a job directly under the jurisdiction of the School Committee, could the 30 day period be legally waived?
Gardner Magazine has sent an email today to Council President George Tyros and Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson regarding the matter: This is the text of the email: “Dear Council President Tyros, Will you be asking the City Council to open an investigation into the possible illegal election of Jennifer Pelavin to the position of City Clerk. My understanding is that in order to be eligible for the position in the first place, she would have had to resign first and then wait 30 days. Did this occur? Had Pelavin already resigned prior to being selected for the position? Mayor Nicholson, could you ask the City Solicitor to look in to this? If this is a problem it should be corrected immediately at the City Council meeting tomorrow(Monday) with a rescinded vote. “
Gardner Magazine will let you know when we get more information.
We do know that a rant by a former City Council member on a Rogue Gardner Facebook Group relating to the matter is completely incorrect. The assertion is that any elected official can’t accept a municipal position unless elected to it by the people – this of course makes absolutely no sense as the City Charter clearly specifies that the City Council interviews for and elects a City Clerk. The actual issue is whether the election was illegal and premature without a 30 day waiting period being served after the individual resigned from any elected City positions before accepting a municipal job.