Michael Silva, retired police detective, has won the East Ward seat on the Newark City Council, defeating Anthony Campos, the city’s former chief of police.
Silva leads by 252 votes, 983 to 731, 57%-43%, with 56.5% of the vote counted.
Silva will replace Augusto Amador, who is retiring after 24 years on the city council.
While Assembly Budget Committee Chair Eliana Pintor-Marin (D-Newark) was an early Silva supporter, most of the political establishment wound up backing him: Mayor Ras Baraka; Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz (D-Newark); Councilmen Anibal Ramos, Carlos Gonzalez and Luis Quintana; Essex County Executive Joe DiVincenzo; Sheriff Armando Fountoura; and Assemblywoman Shanique Speight (D-Newark.
Silva finished 36 votes ahead of Campos in the May 10 election, 1,104 to 1,968 (35.6% to 34.6%). Jonathan Seabra finished third with 478 votes (15.4%), followed by ex-police officer Louis Weber, who was running on a slate with Baraka before his campaign imploded following allegations of sexual assault. He received 449 votes (14.5%).
In May 2018, Amador finished first in a five-candidate field, outpacing Campos by 269 votes, 43%-35%. Amador then won the June runoff by a mere 83 votes, 1,824 to 1,741 (51%-49%).