Challenger bests longtime incumbent in Wyandanch library trustee race

A longtime incumbent on the Wyandanch library board of trustees appears to have been narrowly ousted in a recent election, though the library has not confirmed the vote.

The tally the night of the April 5 election was 112 votes for challenger Kisha Carter and 105 for incumbent Nancy Holliday, according to Carter and board vice president Jordan Thomas. 

There are five library board trustees. Carter said Holliday, board president Ghenya Grant and election clerk Andrew Caynon each congratulated her on her victory that night. The next day Thomas posted the results on Facebook.

In an email to Newsday two days later, Caynon said he did not have the “official results as the election has not yet been certified.” Caynon did not respond to additional requests for clarification. Holliday and Grant did not respond to requests for comment.

According to state law, there is no formal certification process in school district public library elections, said Kevin Verbesey, director of the Suffolk Cooperative Library System.

“The person with the most votes, as counted on election night, wins,” he said. “End of story.”

Holliday, 68, a retired teacher who also serves on the Wyandanch school board, has been a library trustee for more than 20 years. Carter, 50, is a teaching assistant for the Wyandanch school district.

Thomas said that because the votes were tallied with both candidates present, Carter is the winner and the election certified. Her five-year, unpaid term would begin July 1.

“According to the law, this is a done deal,” he said.  

Caynon on Wednesday wrote in an email that the library did receive a “challenge” to the election and any questions should be referred to Holliday. She did not respond to requests for comment.

If Holliday is challenging the results, she would have to back up any claims in an appeal to the state Department of Education. Department officials said they have not received an appeal, but did receive resident “complaints about the library improperly providing absentee ballots.”

Resident Joseph Jenkins, 72, who uses a wheelchair, said he never received his absentee ballot and had to have his caregiver take him in person to vote.

“I think there needs to be more oversight,” Jenkins said, adding he knows of others who are homebound who also had trouble getting absentee ballots.

The board fought the election of trustee Katrina Crawford in 2019, disqualifying her from the ballot after stating she did not live in the district despite multiple forms of proof she provided. They then contended her write-in candidate win was null due to a lack of a middle initial in half her votes. Crawford appealed to the state and the board was ordered to appoint her.

If Carter’s win holds up, the balance of the board would shift, as Holliday, along with Grant and trustee Norman Sellers, often hold the majority, such as in last year’s vote to separate from the school district.  

“I’m just looking to move forward and help the library get to a better place,” Carter said.

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.