Huber was first elected mayor in 2023 as both the Republican and Democratic candidate. This year, Huber appeared on the Democratic line and faced challenges from Republican Jennifer Niznik and Charles Ferry, who ran on the “Village United” line. Huber initially also sought the GOP line. He and Niznik also had their own similarly-titled lines: Huber’s “Village First Party” and Niznik’s “Village Unity Party.”
When votes were counted on election night on March 18, Niznik appeared to be in the lead. That’s according to a petition she filed in court over the race, which says a canvass by election inspectors identified 412 votes for Niznik, 370 for Huber, and 151 for Ferry.
A recount by Village Clerk John Kargethe next day, however, found Huber to be in the lead. Karge declined to certify the results, and called for the Dutchess County Board of Elections to conduct a recount.
Niznik filed her petition as a result, also calling for a recount. Her petition levied multiple accusations against the village, specifically Karge.
“Based on what had happened leading up to the election, which I think carries just as much importance, I was very skeptical of [Karge recounting the votes], and that’s why I went forward with taking this to court," she tells WAMC. "Because if nothing else happens from this election, I just want to make sure that, in the future, we can have a fair election in the village of Wappingers Falls through the Board of Elections. I don’t think it should be handled by our village clerk.”
After weeks of hearings, a Dutchess County Supreme Court judge decided to dismiss Niznik’s petition, void the election night count and honor the recount completed by the county Board of Elections on March 25. That recount has yet to be made public. When asked, the BOE directed WAMC to Village Hall for the results, but Clerk Karge says he hasn’t received the final tally. Officials have recognized Huber as the winner.
Karge defended himself against Niznik’s accusations in a statement to WAMC, saying in part: “For 23 years, I have run strict and fair elections, and I am committed to ensuring that each election reflects transparency and accuracy…I put my heart and soul into my work, and I will continue to uphold the trust of the public in every election.”
Niznik’s petition alleged that Karge’s recount was unauthorized, and that he failed to submit all the necessary voting materials to the BOE for its recount. It also said the village did not properly verify voters by comparing their signatures. But Judge Christi Acker dismissed those claims. In her decision, she says poll watcher testimony shows voters were properly identified and checked for their signatures, and that Karge turned over all the required materials to the BOE. She writes in her decision: “Quite simply, there is no proof that the Village Respondents failed to follow the Election Law.”
Niznik says she accepts the outcome of the petition, but she maintains the scope of the case was “very small.” Speaking with WAMC, she lists other concerns she wished Acker had heard.
“As far as John Karge goes and leading up to the election, he ran that election at his discretion. Not by the rules, at his discretion," she says. "He let people vote that weren’t registered to vote at his discretion. He handed out independent lines to candidates that didn’t qualify for independent lines. Bottom line is: my hope going forward is that the Village of Wappingers Falls hands their election process over to Dutchess County and the Dutchess County Board of Elections.”
The BOE and Mayor Huber did not return multiple interview requests from WAMC. The winner of the race serves another two-year term.
