Both New Hyde Park and Floral Park residents elected their village leadership to another term on Tuesday, March 18, including a new face to the New Hyde Park Board of Trustees.
“We want to thank our residents for their support in the election,” New Hyde Park Mayor Christopher Devane said in a Wednesday morning statement. “We are honored to continue the work we have started in our first term. Our best days are ahead of us.”
In New Hyde Park, voters kept Devane as mayor, casting 250 ballots in his favor, and Deputy Mayor Trustee Madhvi Nijjar, casting 229 ballots in her favor, according to Village Clerk Rebecca A. Sheehan.
Both were elected to the board in 2021 under their nonpartisan Unity Party and ran uncontested this year, though Sheehan reported there were 49 write-in votes in the mayoral race.
The two have said they were excited to lead the village for another four years in order to complete major construction projects their administration has been engaged with over the past few years, including constructing a new community center, creating a new park on South 12th St. and upgrading Memorial Park.
Over their four years in office, the two have spearheaded upgrades to the village hall and the department of public works, as well as the creation of roughly a dozen new community events like a St. Patrick’s Day parade, Lunar New Year celebration and Diwali festivities.
Voters also elected a new trustee, Edward Quinlan, to the board, casting 257 votes in his favor. Quinlan, who ran unopposed, will fill Trustee Arthur Savarese’s seat, who is stepping down at the end of this term. In the trustee election, which included Nijjar’s race, Sheehan reported 57 write-in votes.
Prior to running for this seat, Quinlan served on the village’s zoning board and Garden City Park’s school board as both a president and trustee. He said he looks forward to continuing to serve his community in this new capacity while supporting the mayor’s community initiatives and projects.
New Hyde Park residents also re-elected their Village Justice Timothy F.X. Jones, casting 267 votes in his favor on Tuesday. Jones was elected to the seat in 2021 when Devane left it to run for mayor. Sheehan reported four write-in votes for the justice seat.
In Floral Park, voters re-elected long-term Mayor Kevin Fitzgerald, Deputy Mayor Lynn Pombonyo and Trustee Frank Chiara to their seats on the board. All races were uncontested.
Fitzgerald won with 263 votes, Pombonyo won with 261 votes and Chiara won with 265 votes, according to Village Clerk Joseph O’Grady.
The three, who have all held various other community service positions in the village and have been on the board for over eight years, have said they look forward to continuing to serve Floral Park together.
