An
NA Today Election Exclusive:
PALATELLA,
FRATO WIN NORTH ARLINGTON SCHOOL BOARD RACE!
Board
President and Recreation Commissioner elected
over former NA school teacher
Frato
defeats Mazzolla by 6 votes!
15%
of voters approve school budget, 763-517
NORTH
ARLINGTON - Borough voters reelected the board's
president while selecting a recreation commissioner
over a former district employee yesterday.
Karen
Palatella led the field with 793 votes or 59% of the
vote. Frato, a union glazer and community activist
finished second with 640 votes or 48%. Mazzolla
trailed Frato with 634 votes. Voters approved
the 2005-06 school budget by a vote of 763-517
which will raise property taxes for the fourth straight
year.
On
a clear and sunny day, only 1,324 of the borough's
8,775 voters made it to the polling booth.
The board's strategy of a virtual stealth campaign
designed to depress turnout and only appeal to parents
with children within the system worked.
In
what could be regarded as a low key election, the race
started with two incumbents and two challengers only
to see former trustee Scott Hughes resign from office.
Upon resignation, election officials had Mr. Hughes
removed from the April 19th ballot.
Some
say the race became an extension of the animosity between
the political parties as Mayor Russ Pitman made no
bones about his support of both Mazzolla and Frato.
Since becoming mayor, Pitman has been criticized
by several school officials and district employees
who regularly attend council meetings and attacked the
first-term Democrat on his fiscal conservatism.
Since
his 2002 defeat, former Mayor Len Kaiser and several
members of his administration including former administrator Robert
Landolfi and Peter Scandiarato have been actively involved
in the district's education foundation. Former Republican
councilman Jim Herrmann also serves on the volunteer
board along with retired police chief Frank Italiano,
also a school trustee.
To
date, no Democrats have been invited to join.
Palatella's
support was across all twelve of the borough's election
districts. Even in the traditionally conservative
seventh district, Palatella carried the district
138-104 over Frato with Mazzolla trailing with 92.
Mazzolla ran well only in the second district where
he led the field 66-57 over Palatella. In the
eleventh district, Palatella and Frato ran more like
a team with Palatella receiving 75 votes and Frato 74.
Mazzolla trailed with 53.
"There's no
question Stringham ran a very disciplined campaign
that would win as long as the turnout didn't exceed
20%. The fact that he was able to get the budget passed
along with the supplemental questions is a credit
to the strategy he employed," observed one former school
trustee.
Voters
approved some $543,000 in capital questions passed
for windows and a nurse for the district.
While
it was clear that Palatella was behind the budget, the
ticket of Frato and Mazzolla concentrated on poor SAT
scores.
They
took no public position on the school budget.
Anti-Pitman
rhetoric was high last night as school and municipal
employees saw the Mazzolla loss as a reflection on the
mayor.
"Mazzolla
lost because of a low turnout and no real campaign.
The school forces were motivated to pass the budget
and get Palatella reelected. Since neither side spent
almost no money, the natural voting constituency
of parents dominated the results. In addition, there
seem to be a motivation by many within the district
to defeat Mazzolla. The race only indicates that you
can't just throw your name on the ballot and expect
to win. Stringham knows how to win low turnout elections
and until a campaign is constructed to increase turnout,
the special interests that dominate school elections
will continue to be successful," said one longtime observer
of local politics.
