World War II veteran, 93, elected mayor

NEW JERSEY (FOX5NY) - Age is just a number to Vito Perillo. The 93-year-old has just been elected as the new mayor of Tinton Falls, New Jersey.

"I don't think of 93 as being old, really," he says.

Perillo beat incumbent Mayor Gerald Turning on Tuesday in the nonpartisan municipal race by about 300 votes.

Born in 1924, Perillo served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He later worked as an electronics engineer, then in accounting. He says retiring never seemed like an option.

"He doesn't think of himself as 93, he doesn't act like he's 93 and he doesn't feel like he's 93," says his daughter, Anna Mae Perillo.

The mayor-elect says he chose to run to fix municipal taxes which have gone up more than 13 percent in the last few years. He was also bothered by a pair of whistleblower lawsuits involving the police department which cost the borough more than $1 million in settlements.

"I said there's something wrong here and I'm going to run for mayor I'm going to do something about it," Perillo says.

The campaign was run the old fashion way. Perillo says he went door to door handing out flyers and asking the community for their vote. He says he walked well over 10 miles and wore out two pairs of shoes.

"I don't think I missed a house in Tinton Falls," he says.

"What he values is selflessness, hard work, dedication and self-discipline," says grandson Mike Perillo-Gentile.

Perillo will officially be sworn in as mayor in January. When he finishes his term he'll be 97.