Who’s on the March 18 Ballot in Buchanan

Village residents will vote for mayor, two trustees, and village justice

A sample ballot shows the candidates up for election in Buchanan. (Westchester County Board of Elections)

By Eric Harvey, [email protected]

March 17, 2026

The Village of Buchanan election will be held on Wednesday, March 18, when voters will choose the next mayor plus two trustees and a village Justice.

Two mayoral candidates are running on independent lines: incumbent Mayor Theresa Knickerbocker, whose line is called Residents Party, is being challenged by current Trustee Daniel Stewart, of the Buchanan Forward party. No one is running for mayor on the Democratic line.

A lawn sign shows support for incumbent mayor Theresa Knickerbocker and trustee candidates Tania Drezek and Jody Chiappalone. (Regina Clarkin)

A lawn sign shows support for mayoral candidate Dan Stewart and trustee candidates Awilda Baez and Robert Wheeler. (Regina Clarkin)

For village trustee, four candidates are vying for two open seats: incumbent trustee Awilda Baez, on the Democrat and Buchanan Forward lines, Robert Wheeler of Buchanan Forward, and Tania N. Drezek and Jody L. Chiappalone, both on the Residents Party line.

Daniel E. O’Neill is the sole candidate on the ballot for village justice, on the Democratic and Buchanan Forward lines.

Polls on March 18 are open 6 a.m.-9 p.m. at Village Hall, 236 Tate Avenue, for Districts 1 and 2, in the Community Room on the second floor.

About the Contributors

Eric Harvey, News Reporter

Eric Harvey joined the staff of the Peekskill Herald as a full-time reporter in September 2024, covering a general assignment beat that includes the City of Peekskill and The Board of Education. Harvey, 26, of Stamford, C.T., previously was a politics and crime reporter at the Bronx Riverdale Press, where he was the recipient of a New York Press Association Better Newspaper Contest award for a 2023 feature story on the man who co-wrote Martin Luther King’s I Have A Dream speech. A graduate of Champlain College in Vermont, Harvey said he likes working in community journalism because it allows for making a difference. “Peekskill is a beautiful and diverse city with rich story potential,” Harvey said. “I look forward to continuing to get to know the community better and shine a spotlight on community members’ needs and interests.” Have a tip? Email [email protected] Want to stay connected? Follow Eric on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @ericsrharvey

Regina Clarkin, Publisher

When the Peekskill Herald weekly newspaper ceased publishing in August 2000 it was the first time in the history of the city that there wasn’t a local newspaper. The award-winning weekly was often referred to as the ‘glue’ of the community. Founded on January 9, 1986 by Regina Clarkin, Kathy Daley and Rich Zahradnik with a $7,000 credit card line, the paper filled the void created when the daily Evening Star was sold to Gannett and moved out of town. Founding publisher Regina Clarkin continued to live in the Peekskill Cortlandt area and turned her attention to other life endeavors. Through the ensuing 19 years, Clarkin was frequently stopped in town and asked when she would start up the Herald again. In January 2019, Clarkin decided it was less labor intensive to deliver a weekly blog than a print newspaper so she began posting one story a week about life in Peekskill. After a successful crowd funding campaign in 2020, the Herald was incorporated as a non-profit corporation in July of 2021. Peekskill Herald is a digital relative of the former print edition, featuring many of the favorite aspects of the beloved Peekskill Herald such as old pictures, personality profiles and well written stories about newsworthy events.