 In a contest between veteran City of Lockport attorneys, Niagara County voters chose Republican John J. Ottaviano as the new County Court judge Tuesday.
His win was part of a strong night for the GOP, which may have added two seats to its County Legislature majority and won two of three Niagara Falls Council seats.
But Austin J. Tylec was the Democrats' brightest spot, winning the North Tonawanda mayoral race.
Ottaviano defeated Democrat Michael E. Benedict, who lost a County Court race for the second consecutive year.
Last year Benedict, a former public defender and confidential law clerk to retired County Judge Sara Sheldon, lost to Caroline A. Wojtaszek.
Ottaviano, who is now first assistant county attorney, spent 25 years as City of Lockport corporation counsel. This was his first run for elected office, and voters gave him roughly a 60%-to-40% margin.
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North Tonawanda
Austin Tylec, left, and Robert Pecoraro.
Tylec was elected mayor of the Lumber City at age 29, succeeding the retiring Arthur G. Pappas.
He was the only Democratic winner. Republicans won every Council race and the clerk-treasurer position.
But Tylec, who won an alderman at large race in 2017, continued to show his vote-getting ability.
Tylec, the son of former County Legislature Chairman John S. Tylec, defeated the GOP's Robert E. Pecoraro, an alderman at large since 2015.
Pecoraro, 63, a retired Air Force colonel, also lost a bid for an Assembly seat last year.
He and Tylec jousted over last year's state audit that reported the city's cash reserves were dwindling and predicted the city would run into cash flow issues.
Pecoraro contended that the audit was a "political hit job" because State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli attended a Tylec fundraiser in June.
However, DiNapoli's spokeswoman denied the audit was politically motivated, and Pappas' formal response to the audit last year did not contest its findings.
Niagara Falls
The Republican team of David J. Zajac and Traci L. Bax finished 1-2 in the City Council race, while Democrat Donta L. Myles, the only Black candidate in the race, won the third seat.
Also-rans were Democrats James M. Abbondanza and Colin G. Ligammari and James M. Perry, a Democrat running on an independent line.
Niagara Falls elects its council in a citywide race instead of using districts or wards, as most local cities do.
None of the incumbent councilmen ran for re-election. Two of them, Democrat William Kennedy II and Republican Christopher P. Voccio, ended up running against each other for the 6th District County Legislature seat.
Voccio had a 14-vote lead in that race, with 91 absentee ballots awaiting counting.
If Voccio holds on, the Republicans will have a 12-3 edge in the Legislature, as Richard E. Abbott, a Working Families Party member with GOP backing, ousted Democrat Anita Mullane in Lockport's 13th District.
The GOP won all but one Lockport Council seat. In the 1st Ward, Democrat Paul Beakman led Republican John Craig by 1 vote, with 43 absentee ballots received so far.
