Kearny mayor, rival slate split, each win two council seats
A fissure among Kearny Democrats led to each side winning two council seats in Tuesday’s Democratic primary.
Three incumbents and one newcomer ran on the independent “Team Kearny” slate against a ticket backed by Mayor Carol Jean Doyle and the Hudson County Democratic Organization.
Councilman George Zapata easily held on to his Ward 1 seat, defeating Doyle’s candidate, Zayda Balcazar, 283-1083. Smiley Whala finished third with 45 votes. The “Team Kearny” candidate in Ward 3, Sarah Bonilla, beat Doyle-backed Edmund Shea by 61 votes, 430-369.
In Ward 2, Julio Huancaya, who had Doyle’s support, unseated Councilman Dennis Solano by 38 votes, 213-175. And in Ward 4, Councilman Stathis Theodoropoulos lost his seat by 32 votes, 335-303, to Orlando Miranda, who had Doyle’s endorsement.
https://newjerseyglobe.com/campaigns/kearny-mayor-rival-slate-split-each-win-two-council-seats/