SECAUCUS — Voters on Tuesday elected newcomers Robert Anderson, Kelli D’Addetta, reelected incumbent Gary Riebesell and rejected the reelection bid of incumbent Thomas Troyer after five nonconsecutive terms on the Board of Education.
Voters rejected the school budget by two votes, but that may change when the provisional ballots are tallied.
Anderson, the former teachers union head, had 1,716, votes. PTA president D’Addetta garnered 1,688. Volunteer firefighter Riebesell had 1,789 votes and former teacher Troyer received 549 votes.
The school budget lost by two votes, 941 voting yes and 943 voting no, a close call where some districts saw a vote against the budget by a small margin. The school budget was nearly $35 million and called for an average tax increase of $74 in school taxes. The tax levy portion represents $31.6 million, an increase of $620,320, which is within the state’s mandated two percent cap.
The budget now goes to the mayor and council for a process of reductions and reconciliation.