Mid Hudson Times Nov. 15 2017

T IMES MID HUDSON Vol. 29, No 46 3 NOVEMBER 15 - 21, 2017 Cheerfest Page 38 3 ONE DOLLAR Scholastic Olympics Page 20 SERVING NEWBURGH AND NEW WINDSOR Jacobson, Monterverde, Sofokles elected Lujan elected Mejia to serve 2nd term on city council By SHANTAL RILEY [email protected] Last Tuesday’s general election provided definitive wins for Newburgh City Council candidates vying for four open seats. Beginning new terms in January, they each vowed to work together on a council that has done a fair amount of bickering in recent years. “The first thing I want to do is be able to work with all the council members,” said Patty Sofokles, who won in Ward 4. “I want a united council that gets along and works together for the betterment of everyone in the city. I’m not just saying that, I mean it.” According to unofficial results, Sofokles received 364 votes, defeating Councilwoman Cindy Holmes who drew 185 votes, and Republican Christine Bello who drew 112. “It was a team effort,” said Sofokles, who ran alongside Ramona Monteverde and Councilwoman Karen Mejia. Sofokles currently serves on the city’s ethics board and assessment review board, from which she will step down at the end of the year. Sofokles co-founded the Downing Park Planning Committee. She also owns and operates Sofokles Tax Service. Continued on page 4 V eterans ’ D ay Veterans salute a passing color guard, Saturday, during a Veterans’ Day Ceremony at Newburgh Town Hall. WWW.MIDHUDSONTIMES.COM to District 4 One of the first Latinos to serve as county legislator By SHANTAL RILEY [email protected] Democrat Kevindaryan Lujan was elected to represent legislative District 4 last week. Lujan made history as one of two of the first Latino candidates ever elected to the Orange County Legislature. According to unofficial results, Lujan brought in more than twice the votes of his opponent, Independence candidate Anthony Tarsio: Lujan drew 894 votes compared to Tarsio, who collected 432. Lujan joins Joel Sierra, of the City of Middletown, to become the first Latinos to win seats on the county legislature. District 4 covers Balmville and the east end of the City of Newburgh, which has a population that is roughly 50 percent Latino. “I was raised by strong independent women, and my Colombian heritage and their work ethic are very much a part of this accomplishment,” Lujan explained Monday. “I am honored to represent the Latino community and hope that this historic achievement will inspire other young leaders to find their voice.” However, Lujan said, he represents a diverse community and he focused on the issues, not on his ethnicity during the campaign. “We had an aggressive ‘get-out-the-vote’ strategy,” Lujan said, and knocking on doors that included Balmville. “We were out at 4:30 in the morning until 8:55 at night on Tuesday.” Lujan said he would work on creating livable-wage jobs in the district. “We Continued on page 3