A look back at the elections

Razor-thin victories and controversies

By FRITZ MAYER

UPPER DELAWARE VALLEY — There was a lot of interest in running for public office among residents who had never run before, and that led to some razor-thin victories in the region.

In the Town of Highland, for instance, Republican Tina Palecek beat Democrat Larry Fishman by just 10 votes in a final tally that ran 347 to 337.

A couple of narrow victories also came with a dose of controversy.

In Callicoon, the newcomer Democratic challenger for the seat of supervisor, Linda Babicz, enjoyed a narrow victory over incumbent Greg Semenetz. The final tally there was 501 to 494. It seems, however, that Semenetz will still be drawing a paycheck and getting health insurance from the town. In one of the last acts of the year, the town board provided $10,000 for Semenetz to serve as a code enforcement officer, and receive health insurance.

In another tight contest, this one among multiple candidates, the race for two council seats in the Town of Tusten was turned upside down for three of the candidates after the absentee ballots were counted. The majority of them went to Republican candidates, and came from the Narrowsburg Adult Home. Before the absentee ballots were counted, Republican Lisa Dowling had 215 votes, Democrat Chuck Hoffman had 210, Democrat Tom Prendergast had 208 and Republican Lewis Meckle Jr. had 180. After the absentee ballots were counted, Dowling had 254, Hoffman had 213, Prendergast had 214 and Meckle Jr. had 219. Democrats have called for an investigation.

Absentee ballots also figured in the results in the hard-fought race to become the new Town Justice of Bethel. Before the absentee ballots were counted, lawyer and former justice Democrat Howie Block was some 29 votes behind Bethel constable Republican Raymond Neuenhoff. However, after the absentee ballots were counted, Block surged ahead and won the contest with a final tally of 735 to 720. Block’s win was credited in part to a strong showing among absentee voters in Smallwood.

In other contests in Sullivan County, the race to become the county judge raised the issue of age, because judges in New York must retire at age 70. Therefore, incumbent Republican Burton Ledina would be forced to step down just three years into the 10-year term. Democrat Cindy Barber attempted to capitalize on that, but voters didn’t buy it. Ledina won with 10,568 votes to 7,457.

In the race for county clerk, Republican challenger Dan Brigss tied his Democratic opponent Neil Gilberg to Governor Elliot Spitzer’s plan to grant driver’s licenses to undocumented aliens. Briggs won 9,376 to 8,214.

In the legislature, Republicans picked up two seats. Republican David Sager beat Democrat Patrick Harrison in District One 1409 to 1284, and in District Nine, Republican challenger Alan Sorensen bested incumbent Democrat Sam Wohl 1,196 to 911, at least in part because of voter dissatisfaction over the status of the landfill.

Across the river in Pike County, the vote was not close, but there was a bit of controversy as Ileana Hernandez, the supervisor of Delaware Township, tried to become the first woman commissioner of Pike County. Hernandez, a Democrat who was running with her Democratic partner Karl Wagner, got into a dispute with the Republican incumbents over the placement of a campaign sign. Also, her mailbox was vandalized with paint and graffiti. In the final vote, Hernandez lost the race for one of three seats. She had 3,249 votes, Wagner had 3717, Republican Harry Forbes had 4,459 and Republican Richard Caridi had 4,540.

Also in Pennsylvania, it was the end of a long run for Bill Gager, the incumbent chairman of the Damascus Township supervisors. Gager was running as a write-in candidate against his opponent Chuck Grady, but the issue of the condition of the roads there turned voters against him. Gager received 197 write-ins against Grady’s 553 votes.