Candidates to face runoff for trustee seat in Old Westbury

A runoff election is planned for the Village of Old Westbury after officials certified a tie in a trustee race.

Leslie Fastenberg, a write-in challenger, and incumbent trustee Andrew Weinberg will be on the ballot. Village attorney Michael Sahn said the election will be scheduled at or before the next trustees meeting, which is Aug. 17.

Fastenberg and Weinberg had each received 178 votes in the June 16 election. Lawyers for both candidates battled in Nassau County Supreme Court. Attorneys "stipulated" the final tally was a tie, according to Justice Arthur M. Diamond in a ruling last week ordering the vote be certified by the Board of Elections. The original tally had Fastenberg trailing Weinberg by three votes, village officials reported in June.

The winners of two other trustee races not in dispute assumed office Tuesday afternoon. Village administrator Kenneth Callahan swore in Marina Chimerine and Cory Baker, write-in candidates who unseated incumbent trustees Christopher Sauvigne and Harvey Simpson.

Fastenberg, Chimerine and Baker ran a last-minute campaign under the New Voice of Old Westbury Party.

Mayor Fred Carillo said the runoff likely will be Sept. 10, pending any appeals. Steven Schlesinger, a Garden City-based attorney for Weinberg, said he has not decided whether to appeal but that it is "unlikely." An appeal would be heard Aug. 18, Schlesinger and Carillo said.

If Fastenberg is elected, the insurgents would control the five-member board.

"I've had no hard feelings; it's what the residents wanted," Carillo said. "I want to work with them, and I want to try to prove to them how hard I work and how we can do the best we can for the village."

By Scott Eidler

scott.eidler@newsday.com@ScottEidler

Scott Eidler is a deputy editor for the towns department at Newsday. Scott has worked at Newsday since 2012 and previously covered municipal government and education.