Chris Fiore easily defeats challenger to win second term as North Haven mayor

Incumbent mayors and trustees were largely the victors in Tuesday's contested village elections across Long Island. 

In North Haven, Chris Fiore, 77, won a second term as mayor. Fiore, a retired retail executive, was first elected in a three-way mayoral race in 2022. He received 258 votes to easily defeat his challenger Barbara Roberts, a co-founder of civic organization Save Sag Harbor, who received 122 votes.

“I feel like a million bucks,” Fiore said Wednesday morning.

Fiore said there’s a “pretty big agenda” for the second term, which includes a multiphase project to develop a community park to be known as Lovelady Park. He said the board also plans to examine several code revisions, such as for accessory living spaces.

In Sag Harbor, though, one resident cast a vote for someone not even in the running: celebrity Justin Timberlake. The entertainer on Tuesday pleaded not guilty in Sag Harbor Justice Court to a charge of driving while intoxicated. 

In other contested village races:

Hewlett Bay Park

Write-in candidate Josh Blisko won a trustee seat with 115 votes. Incumbent Michael Davidov also won a seat with 144 votes while incumbent Stella Gershfeld lost her seat, receiving 29 votes. 

Hewlett Harbor

Challengers swept the mayoral and trustee races with Domenico Calandrella at the top of the ticket ousting incumbent Mayor Mark Weiss, 412 to 380. Challengers Igor Noble and Lorie Ruditser were elected trustees with 413 and 410 votes, respectively. Incumbent trustees Kenneth Kornblau and Thomas Cohen were defeated, receiving 379 and 373 votes respectively.

The offices are unpaid and have two-year terms.

Hewlett Neck

Russel Weinrib and Edward Vilinsky were elected to two trustee seats with 69 and 65 votes, respectively. Incumbent trustee Aaron Schnell was defeated and received 44 votes.

The offices are unpaid and have two-year terms.

Huntington Bay

Trustee Mark Dara was elected mayor for his first two-year term, beating his opponent, Mike Frawley, 327 votes to 195. Mayor Herb Morrow did not run for reelection.

Newly elected trustees Luan Doan and Elizabeth Richter will replace Jay Meyer and Don Rave, who did not run for reelection. 

The mayor is paid a salary of $1,500 a month.

Lawrence

Shlomo Nahmias narrowly defeated opponent Deputy Mayor Paris C. Popack, 889 votes to 864. Nahmias will succeed Mayor Alex H. Edelman, who is finishing his fourth two-year term in office and was ineligible to run for reelection due to term limits.

The office is unpaid, with a two-year term.

Manorhaven

Incumbent Mayor John Popelski defeated trustee John Stone to earn a second term in office by 486 votes to 343. Incumbent trustees Harry Farina and Monica Ildefonso were victorious over challengers Nancy Rozakis and Rob Swerdlow. Farina defeated Rozakis 490 to 341 and Ildefonso won 472 to 341 over Swerdlow. 

The mayor is paid $7,000 annually while trustees are paid $3,000 a year.

Muttontown

Incumbent trustees Michael Schloss, Toni Bardong and Mohinder Singh won the three open trustee seats, tallying 296, 276 and 268 votes, respectively. Challenger Lauren Calabrese received 168 votes and Russell McRory, who was also vying for a seat, got 155. 

Trustee terms are four years and are unpaid. 

Port Jefferson

Kyle Hill, who received 796 votes, and Xena S. Ugrinsky, who secured 673 votes, defeated Marie Parziale with 449 votes to win two trustee seats.

Hill and Ugrinsky will fill the seats currently held by trustees Rebecca Kassay and Drew Biondo, who did not seek reelection.

Terms are for two years, and trustees are paid $12,500 annually.

Sag Harbor

Incumbent trustees Jeanne Kane and Edward Haye won reelection to two-year terms. Kane, with 239 votes, and Haye, with 237 votes, defeated challengers Mary Ann Eddy and Ronald Reed, who received 204 and 108 votes, respectively. Trustees are paid $12,000 annually.

Woodsburgh

Write-in candidate Simon Fishman won a seat in the trustee race in Woodsburgh with 77 votes. Incumbent trustee Shira Hoschander was elected with 103 votes while incumbent trustee Carl Cayne was defeated with 43 votes.

With Carl MacGowan, Deborah S. Morris, Joshua Needelman, Ted Phillips and Joe Werkmeister

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.