Dan Nachmanoff and Frank Cilluffo won the two seats for Great Neck Park District commissioner at the election last Tuesday, Dec. 9.
Nachmanoff retained his commissioner seat with 782 votes. His term is for three years. Challenger Neil Leiberman lost with 325 votes and Jeffrey Meier Stein also lost, with 171 votes.
Four candidates vied for the remaining two years of the seat vacated a few months ago by Ruth Tamarin. Cilluffo won with 621 votes. The other three challengers who lost this race include: Eileen S. Falk, 153 votes; Sharon Epstein, 383 votes; and Laura Cohen, 278 votes.
Nachmanoff, who is just finishing his first term, thanked the park district residents for their support, telling the Great Neck Record that he is “proud to serve another three years as commissioner of this great district.” Congratulating Cilluffo on his victory, Nachmanoff added that he “looks forward to working together as a team along with Commissioner Robert A. Lincoln, Jr.”
Cilluffo, too, thanked park district residents “who battled the weather to vote for me.” Adding that he considers this new post a privilege, he thanked his family for their support and added congratultions to Nachmanoff.
When the results were announced on election night, long-time Park Board Commissioner Robert Lincoln, who will serve as park board chairman next year, told the Record that this election process shows “local government at work … home rule and a hometown working together.”
The day after the election, Leiberman, who has run for park office (and lost) many times over the past 20 years, told the Record that he has “chosen to accept defeat graciously” and “will not dispute the outcome of this election.” He also pledged to “continue to attend meetings.” Two days later, at a park board meeting, Leiberman spoke up at the end of the meeting to challenge the results, stating that he thought he had won, though offering no data to support that claim. When he questioned part district attorney Chris Prior, Prior said there are three days following an election in which the results may be challenged, with an attorney filing papers before a judge. Leiberman said he felt he had won, but could not afford a lawyer. The deadline passed without actiion by Leiberman.
A park district spokesperson said that about 12,725 park district residents are eligible to vote, although only 1,278 residents voted for the three-year spot and only 1,435 voted for the two-year spot.
Nachmanoff and Cilluffo will be sworn into office for their new terms on Jan. 1, 2015.
