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November 4, 2009

Winning candidate refuses to shake hand of loser

CNHI News Service

BEVERLY, Mass. - There's no question Mayor Bill Scanlon is a man of his word.

Scanon, who easily won an eighth term in office Tuesday, refused to shake the hand of the candidate he defeated because he had said two years ago he would never do so.

Challenger John Burke visited Scanlon's victory party at a local hotel after the election to offer his congratulations.

But when Burke reached out his hand, Scanlon shook his head and said, "Nope."

Burke responded by mockingly genuflecting and making the sign of the cross. He then briskly departed.

Asked why he snubbed Burke, Scanlon said: "I told him two years ago in this hall on election night that I would never shake his hand because he tried to ruin the lives of some perfectly good people."

That was a reference to an anonymous letter Burke, then a city councilor, wrote to the council accusing the Police Department of covering up misconduct.

Burke was exposed as the author of the letter when he inadvertently left his computer flash drive in City Hall. He was censured for the incident.

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The Salem, Mass., News provided details for this story. www.salemnews.com.

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