The Elmont School Board election that was held last May was a controversial one. Even months after its outcome, the election is still being talked about in Elmont as the board of education has appointed a committee to look into the election process.

There were three seats open on the Elmont Board of Education with one seat being decided by the slightest of margins as incumbent Lorraine Ferrigno defeated Elsy Guibert by a single vote.

However, that is only when the controversy began. According to Elmont School Board President Aubrey Phillips, shortly after ratifying the budget and school board member vote of 2004, the board was informed by residents of possible irregularities.

Guibert filed a petition with the state education department concerning the election and named the school district in a lawsuit, which alleged the denial of duly registered and legitimate residents of the Elmont School District the right to vote. Further, the lawsuit cited several instances of possible voter fraud.

The lawsuit alleged that there were instances where voters where not domiciled in Elmont. There is a debate as to whether three voters who voted at the Gotham Avenue School were residents of the Elmont School District.

According to Phillips, the district believes it conducted the elections in a proper manner and certified the results. Currently, the board is awaiting the decision from State Commissioner of Education Richard P. Mills on the petition.

After Guibert filed the lawsuit challenging the election, school board member Kenneth Williams proposed forming a committee to look into ways to ensure future votes in Elmont would be held fairly. The board unanimously voted to form the Election Procedures Review Committee, which consisted of Williams, the chairperson, and board members Pamela Monteverde and Deanna Doreson.

The committee was to review, report and recommend necessary improvements to elections procedures in the district, according to Phillips. Members of the community were invited to contact the committee chairperson in writing with suggestions, concerns and recommendations.

The committee suggested a review of all voters in the district would prove cumbersome and expensive. After consultation with the school district's attorney, Colum Nugent, the committee contacted only individuals whose names appeared in the lawsuit as well as those named by community residents, requesting they complete a questionnaire. Other steps include preliminary interviews with key district election personnel and a review of the district's buff cards.

No final report has been made to the board of education.

The next meeting of the board of education will be March 15 at 8 p.m. at the Covert Avenue School.