GOP sweep all seats in Knox

KNOX — Although Democrats outnumber Republicans in Knox by nearly 2 to 1, the Republican-nominated candidates took all of the seats up for election.

The GOP victory followed a heated race that included an upset by the Republican candidates for the Independence Party nominations and high-strung town meetings with accusations of politicking.

Unofficial results show incumbent supervisor Vasilios Lefkaditis, a Democrat backed by the Republican and Independence parties, with 655 of the votes and current Councilwoman Amy Pokorny, a Democrat nominated by the Democratic Party, with 427 votes for supervisor.

Kenneth Saddlemire, a Democrat running on the Republican line, took 698 votes for town council. His GOP running mate, Karl Pritchard, who is not enrolled in a party, received 613 votes.

Incumbent Democrat Daniel Hanley received 438 votes, and Brett Pulliam, a planning board member not enrolled in a party but running on the Democratic line, took 373 votes.

Of the seven seats up for election this year, all but two were contested. The Democratic line was made up of mostly Democrats, while the Republican line pulled from all parties; the Republican candidates also took the Independence line in a write-in campaign this September.

The town will be awaiting the counting of absentee ballots, which could affect two close elections — for town clerk and town justice. Incumbent Clerk Tara Murphy, who ran on the Democratic line, received 497 votes; her opponent, Traci Schanz, the Republican nominee who is enrolled in the Independence Party, received 556.

The GOP nominee for town justice, Republican Timothy Francis, took 545 votes. Democratic incumbent Jean Gagnon, the Democratic nominee, took 501.

Highway Superintendent Gary Salisbury, a Republican, and tax collector Diane Champion, a Democrat, were both unopposed. The two incumbents ran on both the Democratic and Republican lines, and were the only ones to do so, as well as being the only candidates to run unopposed.

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