Great Neck Library Election Sparks Divide Over Vote Counts, Content

GREAT NECK, NY — The Oct. 31 Great Neck Library board elections still have no official winners, and now two board candidates have filed a lawsuit challenging the validity of proxy votes, in an election with tight margins.

On Nov. 7, according to incumbent board member Liman Mimi Hu, candidates Jessica Hughes and Christina Rusu filed a lawsuit against the Great Neck Library and three board candidates, alleging election irregularities. The three named defendants, Hu, Karen Hirsch-Romero, and Rory Lancman, stressed their opposition to censorship during their campaigns.

Hu wrote on Oct. 13, "In this 2022 election, we are facing an opposition intent on banning books. They want to elect trustees who will micro-manage the librarians and limit programing to their personal taste. Efforts to destroy the role of libraries in a free society are happening nationwide."

In her campaign, Hughes said portraying her as pro-"book banning" was inaccurate.

During an Oct. 7 meet the candidates forum hosted by the Port Washington-Manhasset League of Women Voters, Rusu said "not every book is for every reader—some of us may have different opinions of how we view society these days" and said she decided to run as a concerned parent.

The candidates expressed differing opinions on whether books with sexual content should be in the "tween" section of the children's section or the young adult section.

At the meeting, Hu drew applause when she said "intellectual freedom is a pillar of our democracy. No book banning in any shape or form should ever happen in the library."

Hughes replied, "I think most people just want to know what their children are going to come up against when they go through the library stacks."

The divide between those seeking inclusive and LGBTQ+ materials in libraries, and those concerned about what they see as not-child appropriate content drew a record voter turnout of 3,500 voters for the library board election, Newsday reported.

Similar battles have made headlines across Long Island, at the Smithtown Library and in the Connetquot School District.

Initial election night results had Hughes with 1,718 votes and Hu with 1,468 votes, according to the petition filed by the two plaintiffs.

John J. Ciampoli, the attorney representing the plaintiffs, told Newsday that proxy votes cast after the deadline or those that were not properly submitted should not be counted.

“We want every legal vote counted,” he said. “The court has the power to review the process, to review the individual ballots and if need be to order an election to be done over, if they find it was done improperly.”

Rusu and Rory Lancman were also close in the count, with 1,597 to 1,443 votes. According to Newsday, another 333 proxy and absentee ballots remain to be tallied.

Hu, Lancan and Schader issued a joint statement on Nov. 7:

"Today candidates Jessica Hughes and Christina Rusu filed a lawsuit against the Great Neck Library and each of us personally, throwing the kitchen sink at the entire Great Neck Library election in a desperate attempt to prevent the inevitable: the counting of the remaining proxy ballots which will allow Mimi Hu and Kim Schader to join Rory Lancman as winners of this election."

"This lawsuit is a slap in the face to voters, library users, taxpayers, and the library’s professional staff. It is an extension of the vitriolic, disrespectful, scorched earth campaign which has been waged both in this election and, truth be told, against our civic institutions."

Hughes and Rusu also shared an official joint statement on Sunday.

"We filed this petition in order to uphold the voting process and the rules promulgated by the library in connection with voting matters. The rules of any election should be strictly enforced in order to avoid disenfranchisement of voters. By seeking to have an unbiased review of the voting procedures conducted in this election we are seeking protect voters."

On Nov. 3, the library addressed the ongoing battle.

"The Great Neck Library election results are not yet available. We continue to work with all candidates as we canvass ballots in order to certify final results."