Tony Perry Sworn In As Middletown Township Committeeman

Tony Perry, 27, was unanimously selected by the Middletown Township Committee to fill the vacancy created by Stephen Massell’s resignation as the first order of business of the Committee’s meeting last night at Town Hall.

Senator Joe Kyrillos issued the Oath of Office to the millennial Committeeman as his wife, Allanah held the Bible, and his parents, Scott and Colleen, stood with support and pride.

Massell resigned from the Township Committee on October 16 to accept his appointment to the Monmouth County Tax Board.

A 2012 graduate of Temple University, Perry has been Senator Kyrillos’ Chief of Staff since December of 2014. Prior to joining Kyrillos’ staff, Perry was employed in the Office of the Governor where he worked on the recovery efforts associated with Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Irene.

Perry is the President of the Middletown Public Library Board of Trustees and a Member of the Middletown Planning Board.

In his letter to the Middletown Republican County Committee endorsing Perry for the position, Kyrillos said that Perry “exemplifies the important qualities of an effective public servant—a passion for making a difference, the strong commitment to helping others and the ability to navigate government and get things done.”

According to New Jersey law, when a vacancy occurs in an elected municipal office, the County Committee of the party of the official elected for the term is required to submit three names to the governing body to choose from to fill the vacancy until the general election. The Middletown Republican Committee submitted Perry, Patricia Snell and Christopher Aveta.

Perry is Mayor Gerry Scharfenberger’s son-in-law, a factor which made his selection more difficult, according to Committeeman Tony Fiore who made the motion to select Perry.

“We had three great choices,” Fiore said. “Tony was the best choice with the most relevant experience, even at his young age. We knew that appointing him opened us up to criticism given his relationship with Gerry, but he was still the best choice. I am confident that once the voters of Middletown see Tony in action and get to know him better than they already do, they will agree with the choice next November.”