Sarah Trafton is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media six weeks have passed and the seat on the Catskill Village Board formerly held by Vincent Sealey remains unoccupied, while the process required to fill the vacancy remains unclear. Seeley resigned on January 8 following a four-month absence from his duties. The former village president was elected to his fifth term as trustee in March 2019. It was announced in January the board would have to appoint someone to fill the vacancy until a special election could be held in 2022. However, the village charter says the board cannot appoint to fill a vacancy. “According to our charter, it says it has to be a special election,” Village Vice President Joseph Kozloski said. “It does say the trustees cannot appoint another trustee, it has to be an elected position.” Kozloski is unsure if the special election could be held this year. He said there are questions that need to be answered and village attorney Ted Hilscher is looking into the matter. Rebecca Ruscito, a staff attorney for the New York Council of Mayors, said under New York State Village Law, the trustees could appoint someone to fill the position for the remainder of the year, but the village charter could in theory supersede state law. Because the resignation did not occur until after December 31, the election will not be held until March 2022, Greene County Board of Elections Republican Commissioner Brent Bogardus said. “So it does not go on the village election ballot for this March. It would be an appointment of the village board until next March,” Bogardus added. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.