WEST ORANGE, NJ — Incumbent Mayor Robert Parisi earned a decisive victory in the Nov. 6 election for mayor, garnering approximately two votes for each vote his opponent, Councilman Joe Krakoviak, received. Parisi will add four more years as mayor to the eight years he has already served.
All results from the Nov. 6 election remain unofficial until certified by County Clerk Christopher Durkin.
According to the Essex County Clerk’s Office website, with 100 percent of districts reporting in, Parisi received 11,316 votes, or 65.95 percent, while Krakoviak only received 5,811 votes, or 33.87 percent. There were 32 write-in votes.
“It’s always an honor to be re-elected; it feels good,” Parisi told the West Orange Chronicle in a phone interview on election night. “I’m honored to serve as mayor of West Orange.”
Parisi expressed his gratitude to those who voted for him.
“We do the best we can every day to serve the community. It’s great to feel appreciated and that people feel we do a good enough job for another four years,” he said. “To those residents who didn’t support me, it just makes us want to work harder to earn their support and their trust.”
As he moves into his third term as mayor, Parisi looks forward to continuing to work on the many redevelopment projects currently pending in West Orange.
He credited the Central Avenue redevelopment as a wonderful opportunity for the town, adding that as work moves ahead, the project becomes more exciting for West Orange.
He also expressed excitement to see Phase II of the redevelopment on Main Street get under way and to see how Essex Green will shape up.
“At Essex Green, they made a major investment,” Parisi said of Clarion Partners, the property owner. “It’s a good sign for our community when people want to invest in us.”
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