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05-14-09
Many surprises as Mt. Vernon Democratic Committee nominates slate of candidates
    On Thursday night, May 14, a near record crowd of district leaders and candidates packed Mount Vernon Democratic Committee Headquarters to attend a convention that would decide which candidates would be endorsed for the next big election in November.
     The evening was filled with plenty of drama, suspense and controversy, since nine residents were present and were all seeking endorsements for City Council seats. A total of four seats are up for grabs this year.
     Seeking City Council seats were: incumbents Yuhanna Edwards and Council President William Randolph, whose terms are about to expire and are seeking to be reelected.
     Another seat being vacated belongs to Loretta Hottinger, who is leaving to fill Judge Helen Blackwood's position as the city's Corporation Council. Councilman Marcus Griffith is also vacating his seat for a run at City Comptroller. So all these upcoming vacancies attracted a total of nine residents to the convention in hopes of being endorsed by the Democratic Committee.
     The first course of action involved the following county nominations: Incumbent Andrew Spano was nominated for County Executive, incumbent Janet DiFiore was nominated for District Attorney, and incumbent Tim Idoni was picked for County Clerk.
     Next on the agenda was the City Court Judge slot, and that selection attracted a host of speakers seeking the support of their favorite candidates. Ultimately, Judge Helen Blackwood was endorsed over the other two candidates.
     When it came time to nominate a candidate for the comptroller's position, a 'voice vote' was requested by Committee Chair, Devereaux Cannick. After the 'voice vote' took place, Cannick told the group that it was too close to call and he huddled with other committee officers to decide what to do next. After much back and forth, Cannick announced that a 'roll call vote' would take place to decide the winner. Many district leaders objected, but the vote took place and Marcus Griffith was nominated by a large margin of votes.
     Maureen Walker was asked to speak and she promised she would be elected by the people of the City of Mount Vernon in overwhelming fashion.
     The final matter on the agenda was the nomination of four candidates for City Council seats. That process was very lengthy, time consuming and complicated, since another 'roll call vote' was required. As they called the names off, each person had to state the names of the four candidates he wanted nominated.  After the numbers were tallied, the following individuals were nominated:

• William R. Randolph - City Council

• Eileen M. Justino - City Council

• Jennifer A. Sampson - City Council

• Debra Stern - City Council

     The convention commenced at 7:00 PM and ended at 11:30 PM.

Lyndon D. Williams was nominated for County Legislator (13th District )