Breaking: Victoria Fisher’s Running Mate Officially Out Of BOE Race

As previously reported, Mr. Shamiq Syed who submitted petitions with Teaneck Board of Education Trustee Victoria Fisher and Jonathan Rodriguez, was preliminarily removed from the BOE race when it was determined he may not have met the one-year residency requirement.

Since that time, Mr. Syed provided various documents to support his claim / establish proof of residency.

Among the items received by the county were:

• “Notice to Vacate” his prior residence (in Weehawken)
• A bill of lading for the shipping of a motor vehicle (Porsche 911) from Vancouver to Teaneck in September 2020
• 2 Paychex reports mailed to Teaneck
• Information relating to purchase of a property in Teaneck by Mr. Syed’s father (including various financial documents associated with the sale)
• Certifications from Mr. Syed and his family members

These did not however indicate residency in the Township for at least one year, per attorneys for the county.

The County requested, on multiple occasions, additional evidence that showed Mr. Syed had moved to Teaneck prior to November, 2020

Among the items requested from the County (to show evidence of residency) were:

• A copy of the invoice or receipt from a moving company documenting the date on which you moved to Teaneck.
  • In response, [Mr. Syed] advised that he only moved a crib “and left the rest of our furniture in Weehawken….”
• A copy of [Mr Syed’s] lease or other occupancy agreement from Weehawken.
• Documentation relating to the deed on the property purchased by [Mr. Syed’s] father
• Any copies of credit card change of address notifications
• Any provided documents reflecting the payment of any carrying costs at either Harding or Fabry in Teaneck

These documents were not provided.

Burden of Proof

As the burden of establishing residency is on the nominee, the County has determined that Mr. Syed has failed to meet that burden.

The documents underlying the responses from Mr. Syed contain a lot of personal financial data.  Despite the position taken by Ms. Fisher, I decline to post them here.

I trust that Mr. Orr will confirm this, in due time as well for those that get information from other groups.