Newcomers win in some suburbs
Two men who served as Aurora town supervisor were no match for a woman who never did. Newcomer Jolene M. Jeffe, 41, easily outdistanced incumbent Dwight Krieger and former Supervisor Thomas E. Cotton to win the top spot in Aurora.
Jeffe, who had Independence and Conservative nominations after being defeated in a Republican primary by Krieger, is a stay-at-home mother and former human resources manager for Welch’s and Niagara Chocolates. She ran a campaign lobbying for a fresh voice at Town Hall.
Elsewhere, the race for mayor of Tonawanda was still too close to call early today, with incumbent Ronald Pilozzi barely holding off his challenger, Councilman Rick Davis.
With 87 percent of the votes counted, Pilozzi led by about 100 votes with nearly 3,000 ballots cast.
Davis had charged that Pilozzi was running his administration without any accountability or long-range plan for Tonawanda. A two-term councilman for the 4th Ward, Davis, 36, had the Democratic and Working Families Party nominations.
Pilozzi, 62, disputed Davis’ claims, noting that as mayor he works at City Hall all day and even comes in during weekends. A former longtime councilman, Pilozzi was hoping to win a second four-year term with the Republican, Independence and Conservative Party nominations.
In Lackawanna, the City Council will have a new member along with the two incumbents who won election to three contested seats on the five-member Council.
Adulsalam K. Noman, a first-time candidate who won the Democratic primary in September, was elected to the 1st Ward Council seat with 511 votes, defeating incumbent Andrea Z. Haxton, who captured 297 votes. Noman is an employee of the Lackawanna School District. The two other challengers in that race were Joseph
L. Jerge, who received 34 votes and whose name appeared on the Independence and Conservative lines, and William J. Minniefield, 203 votes, who ran on the First Ward Reform Party line,
In the race for the 2nd Ward seat, Democratic incumbent Geoffrey M. Szymanski easily won election to a second term with 442 votes. His challenger, Timothy J. Blarr Sr., picked up 151 votes.
In the 3rd Ward, incumbent Francis J. Kulczyk, a Democrat, won election to his first full term on the Council with 497 votes. His Republican challenger, Dennis M. Mulqueen, picked up 344 votes.
In Brant, Supervisor Leonard Pero retained his seat, overcoming a challenge from Councilman Daniel B. Kujawinski.
Allegations of corruption in the Collins Highway Department overshadowed other races there. A report from the town attorney alleged misconduct on the part of Highway Superintendent Francis J. “Joe” Gernatt Jr., including charges of inappropriate gifts from vendors, supplies and money used for personal reasons and false payroll records.
Dennis M. Jensen, a 31-year employee of the Highway Department, said he refused to campaign on that issue. Jensen garnered 65 percent of the votes cast.
In Sardinia, voters elected Republican Mary L. Hannon to replace Supervisor Kathleen Balus, who didn’t seek re-election. Hannon, who is finishing a one-year term on the town board, was the apparent winner over Sheila Vrenna, 62, a retired library media specialist.
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