By Jeff Lipton
In what some saw as a stealth campaign, Mael appeared to rely on his affiliation with the growing Orthodox community in the village for the bulk of his support.
Simon Felder, another three-term incumbent, won re-election in the at-large vote in which the top two vote-getters earn seats.
Mael, a member of the Board of Governors of the Lawrence Association who was seeking his first village government post, received 810 votes. Felder, the village's deputy mayor, collected 1,296 votes and Siskind fell out of the running with 717 votes. This was the first contested election in the village in more than 20 years. The election drew a solid turnout.
I hope to be able to heal this community and make it greater than it has ever been, said Felder.
Mael ruffled some feathers by not presenting himself as a candidate to the Nominating Committee of the Lawrence Association, which is the usual step before a run for a village trustee position. Both Siskind and Felder presented themselves to the committee and received the association's endorsement.
Mael has not made himself available for interviews, but he was seen by his opponents as a tough candidate, who was running a well-organized, grass-roots campaign. Even though he did not receive the blessing of the Lawrence Association, he collected enough petitions to get on the June 17 ballot.
David Urbach, a voter who supported Mael, said, It shows Democracy is alive and well in our village and in the United States. We have strong candidates in the village. It also shows that the Democratic system in village politics works.
The platforms of Siskind and Felder were similar, with a strong emphasis on maintaining public safety in the village. Siskind, who has served as village fire commissioner, has said he has assisted the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department in acquiring manpower and equipment to help them do their jobs more effectively. Felder serves as the village's police commissioner, working to secure life and property in the village. He has served as commissioner of every department in the village except the finance department.
