By Sarah Hall

Editor

Republican Dina Falcone has defeated Kevin Rode, who was running as a Democrat, for the Lysander Town Clerk seat. Falcone received 6,556 votes to Rode’s 3,890.

The seat was up for election as Falcone was appointed to fill the term of Lisa Dell, who vacated the position last November to take over as Onondaga County Clerk. Elaine McMahon, who had originally been appointed as Dell’s replacement, left the clerk’s office in May.

Falcone said she was grateful to the people of Lysander for voting her back into office.

“I wanted to just thank everyone for their support,” she said. “That means a lot to me that people have that faith in me. I’m not going to let people down. I plan on being here for a long time.”

Falcone said she hopes people see the town clerk’s office as “the heart of the town.”

“That’s the first place that people come for their needs,” she said. “I want them to associate that thought of a town clerk, of me, as being helpful and somebody they can come to. If I can’t answer their questions, or if I can’t help them, then I can at least point them in the right direction of where to go.”

Since she’s taken over as town clerk, Falcone has hosted both a pet supply drive for the CNY SPCA and a food drive for the Food Bank of Central New York. She said she hopes to host similar events in the future.

“I was thinking about maybe doing Helping Hounds next year,” she said.

She said residents of Lysander and even neighboring towns flocked to the pet supply drive, especially after the revelations of alleged embezzlement by former employees at the SPCA.

“I think that came at like a perfect time just because of what had happened with the SPCA. I think people felt really helpless,” Falcone said. “We’re in a public office. We’re right on Route 31. Hundreds of people drive by us everyday. A lot of people have animals, pets. They buy extra food or they have blankets, or whatever. This is the perfect place to have it. I cannot believe the amount of people who donated and brought things.”

Falcone said such drives are just one way the clerk’s office can serve the people of the town.

“I’m open twice a month at night for people. I’m open on board meeting evenings until 6 p.m.,” she said. “People can come in to get their licenses and things after, when they get out of work. If somebody needs something notarized we’ll come out to their house if they’re elderly. I’ve gone and brought handicap tags to elderly people who couldn’t come out. I just try to make it convenient.”

Falcone said she also works well with the current board.

“We make a really good team,” she said. “We are here to serve the public. It’s a good group of people.”

Kevin Rode did not respond to an email requesting comment.