LIVERPOOL — As expected, Mayor Gary White was re-nominated at the Village of Liverpool Republican Caucus, held April 22 at the Village Hall. White was the sole nominee for mayor. The mayor is presently serving his sixth term in office.
According to village GOP Chairman Joe Ostuni Jr., 31 Republican residents attended.
A political newcomer, Bill McGillivray, challenged incumbent Trustee Christina Fadden and the party designee, Dennis Hebert, a former trustee hoping to return to the village board.
Hebert — who served on the village board from 2007 to 2017 — will run for the seat being vacated by Trustee Jason Recor, who’s leaving in order to run for Salina’s First Ward town councilor. Hebert received the most votes, 25, and Fadden came in second with 19, both winning nomination, while McGillivray finished third with 14 votes.
McGillivray is a 25-year resident of the village, Ostuni said, and this was the first time he had sought elected office.
White is a retired Syracuse Police Department deputy chief who oversaw general services, records keeping and the uniform bureau before retiring to work in the automotive industry. He served six terms as a village trustee and became deputy mayor during the Marlene Ward administration.
He first ran for mayor in 2009 and prevailed over independent candidate Tom Stack by a vote of 291 to 154. In three subsequent elections, White has run unopposed. So with 12 years as a trustee and 12 more as mayor, White has already logged more than two decades in village government.
He is the third-longest serving mayor in village history. Michael Heid was first elected in 1934 and voters returned him to office six more times until Ray Grandy took over for eight terms, 1951 to 1967.
The three candidates nominated by the caucus likely will run unopposed. Democrats have not fielded any candidate for village office since 2001 and have not conducted a caucus since that year.
Any village resident, however, may file an independent nominating petition in order to be listed as a candidate on the June 15 ballot. Petition forms are available at the Village Hall; 315-457-3441. To qualify, each independent candidate must collect a minimum of 50 valid signatures.
