There’s plenty of election action outside of the presidential primaries this spring. The Milford Daily News reports on the battle for the highway surveyor‘s position in that Worcester County town of 27,000. The job pays $80,000 and includes the supervision of snow plowing, street sign replacement, and other forms of upkeep on town roads. (We were surprised to learn that this is an elected position. Are there important philosophical differences on the best way to paint a crosswalk?)

The incumbent is Shelly Leclaire, whose 1999 election “marked the first time in Massachusetts history a woman was elected as a town highway department head,” according to the News. She’s may be challenged by Robert DeMarco, who has pulled nomination papers but hasn’t made a decision on whether to run. DeMarco says he would make “smarter” purchasing decisions than Leclaire does, but the News reports on a possible handicap to his candidacy:

A former Massachusetts Highway Department director, DeMarco was fined $2,000 by the State Ethics Commission in 2003 for violating a conflict of interest rule while soliciting donations for his competitive drag racing team.

The town election is scheduled for April 7.