A statement from the city's election department released last week stated that since fewer than two candidates are running for any one position all will appear on the ballot in November.

Only four non-incumbents are running for the Board of Aldermen and School Committee. Mayor Joseph Curtatone will face no opposition for re-election – he has faced only one general election challenger since taking office in 2004.

Elections Commission Chairman Nicholas Salerno said the most accessible records go back only to 1919, but that since then there had always been a primary. He was reluctant to speculate as to why so few are challenging those already in elected positions, but said it was likely because of the increased scrutiny politicians are facing because of the economy.

"My personal opinion is there are just too many negative issues right now," Salerno said. "Also, there would be just too much money involved getting your name out there in this economy."

City Communications Director Tom Champion agreed, adding that the lack of challengers could be a reflection on the current crop of officials.

"Overall, despite the many municipal issues that continue to be hotly debated, people are generally satisfied with their elected representatives," Champion said.

At least two people in Somerville aren't satisfied with the Board of Aldermen. Long-time Davis Square resident Jim Campano is running against Ward 6 Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz and Winter Hill congregation leader and business owner Luis Morales is running for Alderman-at-Large.

Campano said he is running against Gewirtz because he is upset with the way she favors Davis Square businesses, especially liquor establishments, over residents. He also said she has too much influence over the Davis Square Task Force, a group of residents and businesses that steers community development.

"She's a control freak," Campano said.

Campano, who publishes a newspaper and runs a museum dedicated to Boston's West End, has lived in Davis Square since his neighborhood was razed to make way for an urban renewal project in 1958.

In an e-mail, Gewirtz said, "I think it's good when people run for office because it shows democracy is thriving. Ward 6 has always been a politically active place and I'm looking forward to continuing to get out (to) talk to voters and to run on my record."

In response to Campano's charge that she wields too much power on the Davis Square Task Force, Gewirtz said by design the group involves input from the Ward alderman. She added that her pro-business stance is geared toward preserving Davis Square's character.

"I wouldn't want to see Davis turn into Harvard Sq where chains have taken over and it feels like an outdoor mall," Gewirtz said.

Morales, who emigrated to Somerville in 1980 from El Salvador, is a pastor at Vida Real Church in Winter Hill. He said that as a dual citizen he would bring diversity to the Board.

The four current Aldermen-at-Large are Jack Connolly, Bruce Desmond, Dennis Sullivan and Bill White,

"They are good people but I think a team is a lot better when it's diverse," Morales said. "If you have all Anglos representing Somerville, you'll have a lot of issues ignored."

Among those issues, he said, is a general lack of concern for youth in the city and lack of input from immigrant communities.

"A bi-cultural person sees things mono cultural people don't see," Morales said. "There's a huge amount of immigration in Somerville (and) they're not going anywhere. They're buying property, but they're ignored."

Morales co-owns two East Somerville restaurants, Rodizio and Goucho, and said the experience will help him represent Somerville businesses fairly.

"I'm a businessman, and I know how businessmen think," he said. "A lawyer doesn't see what businessmen see."

Salerno said the city had discussed not holding a primary election as a cost saving measure even before it was discovered how few would run against incumbent officials. He said the move will save the city $65,000.

Morales and Campano both said despite the small field they plan on fighting a hard campaign, and that they were puzzled by the lack of competition.

"It's not the same Somerville I used to know," Campano said, noting he recalled as many as 22 people running for the four Aldermen-at-Large seats. "That's the way it is, nobody's interested."

————-

Next week: a look at School Committee challengers Christine Rafal and Anna Lavanga.