WEST NEW YORK – In a stormy meeting that resulted in Mayor Felix Roque walking out, the West New York Board of Commissioners voted to delay the scheduled April election for the Board of Education until November.
The move was passed by a 3-1 vote. Commissioner FiorD’Aliza Frias was not in attendance.
In a statement, Mayor Roque said the move will save the taxpayers $80,000 and will increase voter participation.
“The voter turnout in January was dismal,” Roque said. “When we’re talking about the children of West New York we want as much voter participation as possible.”
But the move will also give Roque more time to gather a slate of candidates. His opponents were successful this past November in changing the town’s board from appointed by Roque to elected.
Opponents who attended the meeting became very vocal when the board tried to stop them from speaking.
Freeholder Chairman Jose Munoz, who helped push for an elected board, said that he has asked the Hudson County Prosecutor’s office to look into whether the vote was proper and whether it came after the official deadline for moving the election.
The commissioners had until Feb. 21 to request the move from the County Board of Elections.
The commissioner vote came after the Board of Education became deadlocked over the issue. The BOE, however, did vote to fund an April election at its last meeting.
If the county allows the commissioner vote to stand, then the election will be held in November for three board members as well as a special election for the seat vacated by the resignation of Adrianne Sires. – Al Sullivan
West New York commissioners vote to delay school board election
