by Cliff Weathers

Four mayoral candidates have qualified for Nyack’s September 15th Democratic primary by filing petitions with the Rockland County Board of Elections.

Richard Kavesh led all four with 591 petition signatures. Local businesswoman Marianne Olive collected 245 signatures and Village Trustees Marie Lorenzini and Denise Hogan gathered 231 and 225 signatures respectively. Candidates were required to collect 119 signatures from Democrats living in the village and submit them by July 16th.

The Nyack Republican Committee will have the chance to select its candidates for mayor and two village trustee seats at a caucus held later this summer. The party does not select village candidates through primaries.

Kavesh, who told the blog Left of the Hudson he “walked every street, road, avenue, place, and lane in Nyack,” also said that he declined the endorsement of the Working Families Party because the party did not endorse Thom Kleiner for County Executive. The Working Families Party has chosen Andrew L. Spence, a Suffern attorney, as its candidate.

“During past village elections I’ve proudly accepted the endorsement of the WFP,” says Kavesh. “But I’m a lifelong and loyal Democrat and I strongly support Thom Kleiner for County Executive. I don’t want my name to be on a party’s ballot line where Thom does not appear, which could possibly cost him votes.”

Kavesh has also asked that his Democratic rivals and others running for village office join him in two pledges: He has pledged not to take campaign money from village employees, developers, and people with business before the village. He has also pledged to support whichever candidate wins the Democratic mayoral primary.

Two Democratic candidates ‘€“ Doug Foster and Jennifer Laird White ‘€“ are running as a ticket and submitted petitions to the Board of Elections for the two seats as Village Trustees that are also up for election this year.