Top vote-getter Monte Berendes follows a long-standing town tradition and is sworn into office by U.S. District Court Judge Daniel T. K. Hurley. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
By Joe Capozzi
Mayor Bonnie Fischer and council members Bill LeRoy and Monte Berendes were sworn in March 15 by U.S. District Court Judge Daniel T. K. Hurley, a former resident of South Palm Beach.
Fischer was automatically re-elected when she didn’t draw an opponent for the March 8 election.
Newcomer Berendes (31% of the vote) and incumbent LeRoy (29.8%) won election by finishing first and second, respectively, in a field of four candidates.
Berendes replaced incumbent Mark Weissman, who finished with 21.2%, followed by newcomer Cindy Furino at 17.7%. Votes were cast by 630 of the town’s 1,347 registered voters.
After the swearing-in ceremony, LeRoy was appointed vice mayor by the Town Council. Weissman did not attend the meeting, even though the agenda called for the attendance of the previous council before the ceremony.
Later in the meeting, LeRoy asked the town attorney to look into creating an ordinance prohibiting non-town residents from campaigning outside the Town Hall voting precinct.
On election day, LeRoy said, at least four members of the Police Benevolent Association showed up at Town Hall with plans to campaign for him and Weissman.
He said they initially wore PBA shirts before pulling on Weissman campaign T-shirts. LeRoy said a PBA representative contacted him the night before about their plans to campaign on his behalf but he told them not to.
“I said, ‘No, you’re not. It’s not your job,’’’ LeRoy said at the March 15 Town Council meeting. “I don’t want strangers coming in here and campaigning for me. I told them right then and there, ‘You are not supporting me. I won’t be part of this.’’’
Outside Town Hall just after 7 a.m. on election day, LeRoy said a PBA representative “asked me if I wanted them to wear my shirt or their shirt. I said, ‘I don’t want you to wear either.’’’
LeRoy said he asked one man wearing a Weissman shirt where he lived. “He said North Palm Beach. I said, ‘Why are you here?’ He said, ‘To support Dave.’’’
The man then corrected himself and said he meant to say Weissman, LeRoy said.
Seeing that LeRoy was getting angry about their presence, LeRoy said, the man tried to calm LeRoy by pointing out that they’d campaigned in Wellington the day before.
‘‘This town should decide who runs this town, not outsiders,’’ LeRoy told the council. “I think we should have an ordinance, only for local elections: If you don’t live here, you shouldn’t be campaigning here.’’’
Town Attorney Aleksandr Boksner said he’d look into the legality of creating such an ordinance but warned the council: “We are very, very limited at the local government regarding what is constitutionally protected speech.’’
In an interview after the meeting, LeRoy said he has no desire to fight the police union, which endorsed him and Weissman. “If you don’t live here, you shouldn’t be campaigning here.’’
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