After several hundred ballots, it’s official: St. Anthony of Padua is still our favorite saint.

Fourteen years ago, we took a poll of our readership and discovered that St. Anthony was No. 1 among prayer recipients from our diocese. This year, we thought things might have changed, since there are so many more saints from whom to choose. Little did we know that the famous preacher from Italy still holds a grip on us.

St. Anthony received 20 percent of all the votes cast.

“My favorite saint is now, and always has been, St. Anthony of Padua,” wrote Tablet reader Theresa O’Daly. “My parents adored St. Anthony as well. My prayers to St. Anthony always find their way to our Lord with St. Anthony’s intercession. I love him so much. He helps me find solutions to problems or situations.”

We also heard from Jeanette DiNallo, a former member of Blessed Sacrament parish, Cypress Hills, and now a resident of Indiantown, Fla. She said: “Fourteen years ago, I voted for my favorite saint. I have since moved out of state and I have been living in Florida for three years but I still receive my Tablet through the mail. My favorite saint is and always will be St. Anthony of Padua. I have a strong devotion to him since childhood and most of my prayers and novenas St. Anthony hears and answers.”

Of course, St. Anthony is especially known as the saint who helps find misplaced items, which wasn’t lost on Jill Hernandez of Corpus Christi parish, Woodside. “He has never failed me when I need to find a lost item. Also, he interceded when I prayed to him for a very sick friend of mine. In her 20s, she was in the hospital and her prognosis was very bad. I prayed a novena to St. Anthony and she recovered, got married, and had two children!”

“I can be looking for something for hours. I say a prayer to St. Anthony and there it is! Every time it feels like a miracle,” said Jeannette Lynch of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Ridgewood.

“St. Anthony has helped me innumerable times with interceding to God, including finding things. One day I left a tote on a New York City subway. It contained important information. Two ladies to whom I had been talking saw that I left it when I exited the train. I screamed but the doors closed. It was a local train and by a wonderful event I was able to get on an express train and catch up with the train where the tote was. This was highly unusual, including that the exact express train I needed came in time to catch up with the other train. The ladies told me they had given it to the conductor. I found him and he told me he had given it to an office at a station we had passed. I went back and it was there. All of this happened within about 45 minutes. Anyone who knows N.Y.C. subways will be amazed that this could happen. Of course with God this is totally understandable.”

Some voters mentioned that they pray to St. Anthony to find a parking space.

Mary Bennardo writes, “St. Anthony has been my family’s special saint for a long time. My father’s name was Anthony.”

Mrs. D’Andrea of Our Lady of Lourdes, Queens Village, explains her son, grandson and husband are all named Anthony.

Geraldine Cardinal-Colakov of Divine Mercy, Williamsburg, pointed out that St. Anthony lived a balanced life that was expressed in kindness, gentleness and compassion.

Perhaps Rosalie Pinto of St. Athanasius, Bensonhurst, summed it up nicely, “When you need something, St. Anthony comes through.”

Next week: the runner-up saints.