HANOVER — A Dartmouth sophomore is challenging an incumbent Selectboard member of almost two decades for a seat on the board in this month’s municipal election.

Evan Gerson, 20, and Athos Rassias, 63, are vying for a three-year term on the town’s governing board.

A Miami native, Gerson is newer to town, but has “been going to town hall meetings and advocating since day one,” he said. Gerson serves as Dartmouth student government’s deputy town affairs liaison, the vice chairman of the Hanover Bike Walk Committee, and he sits on the Capital Improvement Program Committee, a post to which the Selectboard appointed him.

While campaigning for Selectboard, Gerson has focused on “universal issues that benefit everyone,” including the walkability and accessibility of town and the lack of affordable housing.

“The most scientifically clear way to make housing affordable is by building more housing units,” Gerson said. Gerson is in support of a proposed zoning amendment on the Town Meeting warrant that would permit the construction of new homes on lots where water and sewer services are already available. “Removing barriers like special exceptions” is another piece to the puzzle, he said.

Gerson is behind a petitioned article on the Town Meeting warrant that calls for all Selectboard meetings to be available for live, remote participation, by either video chat or conference call. Currently, Selectboard meetings are broadcast on channel 1085 on Comcast, but there is not a remote participation option.

“Civil participation is essential,” he said. “Everyone deserves to participate in local government.”

Although he’s a full-time student, Gerson has no concerns about managing his time and is “100% committed” to finishing out his term on the Selectboard if elected, he said.

“We need young people, it’s our time,” Gerson said.

Rassias, a longtime Hanover resident and Selectboard member, is seeking to retain his seat.

Rassias grew up in Norwich and attended Dartmouth for medical school. He moved back to Hanover in 1993, after leaving the Upper Valley for a few years. He now works at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center as an anesthesiologist, a critical care physician and the director of the cardiac anesthesia program.

He’s served on the Selectboard for about 18 years and before that chaired the Dresden school district’s budget committee.

“It’s been a huge privilege to serve for this long and I don’t take that privilege lightly,” Rassias said in a phone interview.

Updating the town’s sewer system, managing the West Wheelock corridor and downtown area, and adding housing units to Hanover are initiatives Rassias is eager to continue if reelected.

This isn’t the first time Rassias has run against a Dartmouth undergrad. In 2016, Rassias beat Brian Chen, a junior at the college at the time, for a Selectboard seat.

“I’m not running on politics or on a specific agenda,” Rassias said. “I’m running on demonstrating the ability to make decisions by weighing all of the factors. That’s what I’ve been doing for the past two decades.”

Hanover Town Meeting ballot voting is on Tuesday, May 13 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Hanover High School gym.

Emma Roth-Wells can be reached at erothwells@vnews.com or 603-727-3242.