Michael Jackson, the mayor’s adversary, prevails in Paterson council election
PATERSON – Michael Jackson – Mayor Andre Sayegh’s main adversary on the City Council – emerged victorious in the final counting of votes in Paterson’s 1st Ward election on Tuesday night.
Jackson’s margin of victory shrank from 61 votes to 32 after all mail-in and provisional ballots were added to the total on Tuesday. He ended up with 824 votes, while the Sayegh-backed challenger, Fannia Santana, finished with 792.
“I’m happy that my constituents are going to continue to get fair representation,” Jackson told Paterson Press Tuesday night.
Jackson said he was worried that Sayegh would hold a 9-0 advantage on the council if he lost. The two-term 1st Ward incumbent said he was disappointed in himself for not taking the effort to oust him seriously enough.
“I ran an election against everybody,” Jackson said, noting that Santana was backed by Passaic County Democratic Party chairman John Currie along with at least six other members of the council.
Santana did not respond to a message Tuesday night seeking comments on the outcome. Every incumbent ended up winning Paterson’s six ward races.
Sayegh mentioned the pending election fraud charges against Jackson, a state attorney general case that has dragged on since June 2020.
“Fannia Santana ran a clean campaign and earned all of her votes," Sayegh said. "It is unfortunate that a race that came down to 32 votes will have a cloud hovering over it because there are election fraud charges against Mike Jackson still pending for four years. The public deserves better from the criminal justice system."
Sayegh didn’t mention the pending election fraud charges also pending against Council President Alex Mendez, who won this month’s 3rd Ward race. Sayegh said Mendez’s victory was different because he won by a wide margin this year.
Mosleh Uddin finished third in the 1st Ward election, with 289 votes, followed by Mohammed Mohan Hossein with 206, Rodney Addison with 85, and Ramona Blizzard with 29.
Jackson for the past six years has accused Sayegh of selling Paterson out to outside interests supporting his political career. Jackson has accused the mayor of putting his supporters' interests ahead of those of Paterson residents.
Sayegh has accused Jackson of being a corrupt bully, who the mayor has accused of impeding progress in the city.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Michael Jackson prevails in Paterson council election
