City Councilman Joe Sack was elected mayor by a wide margin, as his Republican “Rye United” team also swept the races for City Council November 5.

 

By Tom McDermott

 

City Councilman Joe Sack was elected mayor by a wide margin, as his Republican “Rye United” team also swept the races for City Council November 5. Julie Killian was reelected to the City Council and will be joined by Terry McCartney and Kirstin Bucci, a Democrat who ran with the Republicans.

 

Unofficial voting returns, with 100 percent of districts reporting, showed Sack with 2,509 votes (59%) to Jovanovich’s 1,650 (38%). Nancy Silberkleit had the remaining three percent. Judged by the 4,287 total mayoral votes cast, turnout was up 12 percent from 2009.

 

Unofficial returns with 100 percent reporting also showed Killian with 2,980 votes, McCarthy with 2,556, and Bucci at 2,480.

 

As for the other three candidates in the City Council election, Democrats Meg Cameron with 1,790 votes and Shari Punyon with 1,445 fell short in their bid to join the Council, as did Independent candidate Jason Mehler.

 

Sack, who outdueled City Councilman and Deputy Mayor Peter Jovanovich in a race that grew testy at times, will succeed Mayor Doug French, who did not seek reelection. McCartney and Bucci will fill Council seats vacated by Jovanovich and Richard Fillipi, both of whom came into office in 2009.

 

The newly elected officials will take office January 1 and the City Council will have a substantially new look. The Council must appoint a member to take Sack’s place, and also one to replace Catherine Parker, who will now represent District 7 in the County Legislature. The appointees will serve through the end of 2014. If they hope to serve longer, each must run for election next November.