Knickerbocker Reelected Buchanan Mayor; Incumbent Trustees Fall
News Article Article pages that do not meet specifications for other Trust Project Type of Work labels and also do not fit within the general news category.
Buchanan Mayor Theresa Knickerbocker was reelected to a fifth term Tuesday night as voters sent mixed messages at the polls.
Knickerbocker, who served five years as a trustee before first being elected mayor in 2014, thwarted off a challenge from Trustee Sean Murray, by a count of 307 votes to 183.
“Thank you to all who voted in the Buchanan elections,” Knickerbocker said. “Thank you for the opportunity to continue the good things we have in the works in Buchanan like the upgrade of our sewer treatment plant through grant money but there is much more to do. Thank you for entrusting me for the next 2 years during these challenging times. It is my great honor to be the Mayor of the Village of Buchanan. I will continue to work hard and do my best for the village we all love.”
However, Knickerbocker’s running mates, Richard Funchion and Nicholas Zachary, both of whom have served 12 years on the board, weren’t as fortunate.
Instead, the two top vote getters were political newcomers, Dan Stewart and Steve Laker. Stewart led the way with 265, while Laker was close behind with 260.
Funchion finished third with 235, while Zachary was fourth with 223.
“I look forward to working with the two new board members Dan Stewart and Steve Laker,” Knickerbocker said.
Laker grew up in Montrose and has lived in Buchanan for the last 16 years. He said he has served in CEO & CFO roles within the retail energy, financial and construction industries. He has served as treasurer for many years for both the Cortlandt National Little League and the Our Lady of Mt Carmel Society.
Stewart is a lifelong resident of Buchanan and a licensed insurance broker and manager of Personal Lines Insurance Department.
Knickerbocker said she has effectively led the village through the most trying time in its history—the closure of the Indian Point nuclear power plants, Buchanan’s largest employer and revenue generator. She said the accomplishment she is most proud of is the passage of state legislation that taxed the spent fuel rod casks at Indian Point, the first such arrangement in the nation.
Murray served as mayor in Buchanan from 2010 to 2014. He was a trustee the two years prior and was returned to the board last year. He is also a former chairman of the village’s Planning Board.
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
