On Monday, June 16th, Tom Lankey was unopposed as he was re-elected as chairman of the Edison Democratic Organization to one year term for the second time. This move comes as the organization continues to grapple with allegations of corruption and internal strife.
The full slate of elected officers includes Tom White as Vice Chair, Michael Zemble as 2nd Vice Chair, Ratilal Patel as 3rd Vice Chair, Bhupendra Bhatty as Sergeant-at-Arms, Kirti Surendran as Corresponding Secretary, Toni Ricgliano as Recording Secretary and Chitra Lehka as Treasurer. The election itself proceeded without incident.
However, the backdrop to Lankey’s re-election is a history of controversy within the organization. The 2024 reorganization meeting saw serious allegations of a $20,000 bribe. During that meeting, a committee member publicly claimed an attempt was made to buy his withdrawal from the chairman’s race. Despite these claims, voting continued, and Lankey was elected chairman.
Lankey now leads an organization that has been consistently plagued by accusations of misconduct and corruption, dating back to the infamous racist flyer incident that occurred shortly before his re-election as mayor in 2017. Calls for the Attorney General to investigate the alleged bribe persist, highlighting ongoing concerns about ethical conduct within the Edison Democratic Organization.
