Newcomers Michael Alonso and Maria Valado won seats on the Bayonne Board of Education, while Trustee Christopher Munoz was re-elected in yesterday’s 10-person race. 
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Munoz, who faced a lopsided defeat in the Democratic primary for state Assembly in June, was the top vote getter in the BOE race, scoring 2,484 votes at the polls, according to the Hudson County Clerk’s Office.
Alonso, a perennial candidate for office who hasn’t been competitive in the past, was easily the shock of the night: solidifying second place with 1,976 machines votes.
Meanwhile, Maria Valado, a Newark school teacher, is currently in third place with 1,796 votes tallied in her favor. She ran unsuccessfully last year and was on a three-person slate backed by Assemblyman Nick Chiaravalloti (D-31) this time around.
Her running mates, Dorothy Patterson and Gene Perry, were in striking distance, missing a board seat by a little over a 100 votes.
Sharma Montgomery currently sits at fourth place with 1,715 votes and could theoretically take the third spot when vote-by-mails and absentee ballots are tallied.
Meanwhile, Trustee Mikel Lawandy missed being re-elected by 129 votes.
The winners were elected to three-year terms on the board.
