Pudup Wins Final Wayne Board Of Education Seat

WAYNE, N.J. — Suzanne Pudup won the third, three-year seat on the Board of Education, voting results show.

Pudup received 4,306 votes, five more than Cheryl Gambuti's 4,301. The vote totals include provisional, mail-in, and overseas ballots cast, voting records provided by town Clerk Paul Margiotta show. Passaic County Clerk Kristen Corrado has not yet certified the results.

Pudup and Corrado have gone back and forth in terms of who the winner of the term would be.

Pudup received the most number of votes as of Election Day, but the addition of mail-in ballots pushed Gambutti ahead of her by nine votes.

RELATED: Wayne Votes Down Full-Day Kindergarten — Again

Pudup, a Democrat and retired Wayne teacher, unsuccessfully ran for a Township Council seat in 2011. She has never held public office.

The Wayne Teachers Union endorsed Pudup, saying she "dedicated her life to the children of Wayne."

Incumbent trustees Mitch Badiner and Michael Bubba were reelected to full terms by a landslide. Stacy Scher, who was also endorsed by the union, was elected to serve a two-year unexpired term. Residents also voted down bringing full-day kindergarten to the district for the second consecutive year.

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