Questions Remain After June Primary Election

Based on the results of the June 24th primary election, the candidates for Yonkers City Council President are now set. Incumbent Lakisha Collins-Bellamy (Dem), Dean Politopoulos (Rep) and Angelique F. Lopez (WFP) will be their party’s nominee in the November general election.

On the political front, the summer promises to be a quiet time in the city. However, after the primary there are remaining questions (listed below) that we at the Yonkers Ledger believe the residents of Yonkers deserve to have answered.

We invite all elected officials or anyone else with knowledge of these matters to please speak out and contact us at support@theyonkersledger.com

Does Council President Lakisha Collins-Bellamy have a conflict of interest created by holding two government positions?

During the primary campaign, Collins-Bellamy stated that there is no inherent conflict of interest in her serving as both the City Council President and attorney for the Yonkers Municipal Housing Authority. She provided the Ledger with a letter from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as authority for her claim. The letter, however, does not address the fact that Collins-Bellamy’s boss at the YMHA is also the Chair of the Yonkers Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA), and that the City Council has jurisdiction over some of the zoning matters that come before the (ZBA). General Municipal Law Article 18 prohibits municipal officials from holding two paid positions that present direct or indirect conflicts with their official duties. Because the City Council is required to vote on matters concerning both the YMHA and the ZBA, it appears that there is a conflict of interest which prohibits Ms. Collins Bellamy from holding both of her current jobs. (See Informal Opinions of the New York State Attorney General Nos: 1997-22; 1998-38; and 2002-7.)

This matter should be referred to the Yonkers Board of Ethics or the New York State Attorney General’s office for a decision on this apparent conflict. It is important that there is clarity on this issue before the November general election.

Did Council Member Tasha Diaz, make misleading and perhaps unethical representations to her fellow council members regarding her sponsorship of a proposed ordinance increasing the noise levels permissible in the Yonkers city code?

It appears that Council Member Diaz may have been motivated to sponsor the legislation based on a campaign donation. However, she never revealed this information to her fellow Council members. During the campaign, Council President Collins-Bellamy suggested that Diaz may have misled the Council. 

In addition, there is a question as to why the City Council did not adequately review the proposed legislation before passing it. There was a drafting error that made the legislation that the Council voted on defective. This raises the question as to who actually read the legislation before the vote to approve it.

The Council’s  recent vote on June 22, 2025 could have corrected the mistakes and rolled back the permissible noise levels to what they were before the 2023 vote, but inexplicably they did not do so, and instead reaffirmed the higher noise limits subject to further review.

This matter should be referred to both the Yonkers Board of Ethics and the Yonkers Inspector General to determine the facts and apply applicable ethics laws. Diaz has already been stripped of her position as City Council Majority Leader for prior misfeasance. She now needs to explain what happened with her curious sponsorship of defective legislation that increased permissible noise levels in the city’s noise ordinance.

Who is Angelique F. Lopez, the winner of the Working Families Party primary for City Council President?

Lopez won the primary over Chuck Lesnick. However, there is no evidence on the internet that she campaigned in the primary. An internet search reveals that she graduated Yonkers Middle High School in 2023. A bigger question involves whether there was an effort to manipulate the WFP candidate nomination process.

Ms. Lopez should come forward and explain who she is, and why she is running as a member of the Working Family Party? The Yonkers Ledger would gladly interview her.

Can someone please explain the power struggle in the Yonkers Republic Party and why there were so many contested races for the Republican County Committee?

What is at stake here?

The Yonkers Ledger would gladly interview appropriate members of the Yonkers Republican Party and write a story on this dispute to educate Yonkers voters.

Should Yonkers consider adopting the same ranked choice voting system that generated excitement and voter involvement in the New York City mayoral primary to better reflect the true desires of the voters?

Collins-Bellamy’s won with a plurality of 38% of the vote in a primary with five candidates. Turnout was extremely low. In another way of looking at it, 62% of the Democrats that voted in the primary chose someone other than Collins-Bellamy. Would democracy in Yonkers be better served by adopting rank choice voting?

What do the people of Yonkers think about ranked choice voting? The City Council and the Mayor should put this matter before the voters in a referendum.

Hopefully, this article can start a conversation regarding these questions. If our readers have an opinion or any information on these matters, please reach out to us at support@theyonkersledger.com. The Yonkers Ledger will continue to follow these issues and will keep readers apprised of any new developments.