Democrats keep majority on Troy City Council

Republican incumbents Carmella Mantello and Jim Gulli won their seats back

TROY, N.Y. » The Troy City Council will once again have a Democratic majority.

Of the seven council seats up for election on Tuesday, as of Wednesday morning, it appears four of them will be filled with Democrats.

Troy City Council President Carmella Mantello, a Republican, kept her seat with 4,324 (53.63%) votes over the 3,724 votes (46.19 %) current district 5 Councilman David Bissember earned.

“I am thankful and pleased that the voters in Troy elected me to a four-year term as Troy Council President. It has been an honor to serve as president for the Troy City Council, which is a co- equal branch of government with the mayor,” said Mantello.

Bissember declined to comment on the results Tuesday night.

The other Republican to win a seat back was District 1 Councilman Jim Gulli. Gulli defeated Democrat Amanda Tobias. Gulli earned 881 votes (58.77%), while Tobias received 618 votes (41.23%).

“I’m very happy to be able to continue the work that I’m doing in Lansingburgh to make it a better place to live,” said Gulli, who will enter his third term next year. “We all have the same problems; we have blight, we have garbage, and we have safety issues. We need to find a focus on working together to get results and to make our districts safer and more comfortable for the residents.”

The District two council race between Democrat Mary Sweeney and Republican candidate Kim AsheMcPherson could not be decided Tuesday night. As of late Tuesday night, AsheMcPherson had 497 votes (50.15%), while Sweeney received 491 votes (49.55%). The race looks to be decided by absentee ballots.

In District 3, Democrat Sue Steele earned 726 votes (54.79%), while Republican candidate James Magur earned 597 votes (45.06%).

“I’m excited, and I’m so looking forward to being a member of the majority on the City Council and to further the mayor’s [ Patrick Madden’s] agenda,” said Steele.

In District 4, incumbent Democrat Anasha Cummings received 601 votes (72.84%), while Republican candidate Seamus Donnelly earned 222 votes (26.91%).

“It’s great to have the confidence of the people in my district,” said Cummings, whose district represents the downtown area.

“[ The council] has been working hard over the last couple of years and I think people saw that and wanted to continue to support it.”

In District 5, Democrat Ken Zalewski earned 1,216 votes (64.92%), while Republican candidate Darcie Cunningham- Casey earned 653 votes (34.86%).

“I was previously on the council for 8 years, so it’s a great feeling,” said Zalewski, who served on the council from 2008 to 2015. “I really missed [ being on the council], I love solving problems and I just want to get things done.”

The District 6 race was won by Democrat Eileen O’Keefe McDermott, who earned 849 votes (55.13%), while Republican candidate Tom Hotte 690 votes (44.81%).

“I am immensely grateful to the resident in Troy for their vote of confidence and support during this very long election season,” she said. “Thank you to my family, friends, and loyal supporters who so generously contributed their time and effort to my campaign. I look forward to serving the residents, families, and businesses in Troy.”