Three Monmouth Towns Have Elections Next Week, Highlands to have its first non-partisan election

Voters in Highlands, Keansburg and Long Branch will go to the polls next Tuesday (May 13) to elect members of their towns governing bodies in non-partisan elections.

Highlands has the only competitive race of the three towns with elections next week. The Sandy ravaged borough is having its first non-partisan election. Last November voters approved a referendum that moved municipal election day to May and did away with party lines.

Six candidates are running for two seats on the council.  None of the six are bracketed together or share the same slogan.

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8.57% Turnout for Middletown School Borrow and Spend Referendum

4,109 of 47,906 registered voters in Middletown Township went to the polls yesterday to vote on a $32.2 million spending measure for repairs to the township’s schools.  The referendum passed 2,951 to 1,158 with 43,797 abstentions.   Mail-in and provisional ballots are not included in these unofficial figures provided by Monmouth County Clerk M. Claire French’s office.

The Middletown Board of Education is now authorized to borrow $19.3  million for school maintenance and repairs.  $12.9 million for the project is expected to come from 20 Regular Operating District (ROD) grants from the New Jersey Department of Education.

In an OpEd posted on Middletown Patch, School Board Member Vinnie Brand made the case for the referendum, arguing that the grants are a rare opportunity which give the board an opportunity to make the “critical need” repairs for 60% of cost while passing 40% off to statewide taxpayers.  Brand noted that interest rates are low and that labor rates are “more reasonable.”

Middletown resident Chris Fotache countered Brand’s argument in an OpEd on MMM submitted yesterday as the polls opened.  Fotache argued that the Board of Ed did not publicize the referendum in order to assure a low voter turnout that would favor the referendum.  He alleged fiscal mismanagement and duplicate spending on repairs and planning fees.

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Explainer: How Redistricting Can Shape Elections — and What Happens When It Does

Explainer: How Redistricting Can Shape Elections — and What Happens When It Does (via NJSpotlight)

What’s responsible for the extreme divide between Republicans and Democrats in Congress, and to a lesser extent, in Trenton? Some political observers believe part of the problem is the way we draw legislative and congressional districts. These days…

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Zipprich Has More Campaign Cash Than Angelini and Casagrande Combined

Assembly candidate Ed Zipprich and Senator Barbara Buono and NY’s Gay Pride Parade, 6/30/13 facebook photo

Red Bank Councilman Ed Zipprich, a Democratic candidate for Assembly in the 11th legislative district, announced today that he has outraised his Republican opponents, Assemblywomen Mary Pat Angelini and Caroline Casagrande, over the last two fundraising periods and that he has more cash on hand than Angelini and Casagrande combined.

RED BANK–  Today, Ed Zipprich, candidate for New Jersey Assembly (NJ-11), announced that he has outraised his opponents, Mary  Pat Angelini and Caroline Casagrande, over the last two fundraising  periods.  Zipprich raised a total of $21,793 during the pre and  post-primary reporting periods while Angelini and Casagrande combined to raise a total of $12,200.  Additionally, Zipprich has $42,819 on hand  compared to Angelini and Casagrande’s combined $37,873–$23,966 on hand for  Angelini and 13,907 for Casagrande.”

“I am humbled by the amount of support I’ve received across the 11th district,” said Zipprich.  “It shows our campaign is building momentum  and that voters are starting to pay attention to the differences between myself and my opponents.  Whether it’s on raising the minimum wage,  ending special tax breaks for millionaires, or finally bringing marriage equality to New Jersey, the residents of the 11th  district know I will fight for them.”

MMM verified Zipprich’s numbers at the NJ Election Law Enforcement Commission’s website.

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Bennett: “We’re fighting this primary as if we’re down 25%”

Monmouth County GOP Chairman John Bennett sounded a rallying cry to about 125 Republican faithful on Saturday morning in Hazlet at a Armed Forces Day ‘friend raiser’ held at the Red Oak Diner for county candidates Sheriff Shaun Golden and Freeholders Tom Arnone and Serena DiMaso.

“We’ve had primaries before in Monmouth County that we did not take seriously,” Bennett said,”and bad things happened.  This time we’re running as if we are 25 points behind.”

State Senator Joe Kyrillos asked the assembled Republicans to make sure their friends and families come out and vote on June 4 for himself and Assembly members Amy Handlin and Declan O’Scanlon, in addition to Golden, Arnone and DiMaso.

Deputy Freeholder Director Serena DiMaso, former mayors Eddie Farve or Bay St. Louis, MS and Brett Warr of Gulfport, MS and former CNN correspondent Kathleen Koch

DiMaso introduced former CNN correspondent Kathleen Koch, former mayors Eddie Farve of Bay St. Louis, MS and Brett Warr of Gulfport, MS, as well as former Congressman Gene Taylor.  The group was visiting New Jersey to support the Bayshore Conference of Mayors, touring the destruction of Superstorm Sandy in Mantoloking and the rebuilding of the Seaside Heights boardwalk.

Golden used the presence of the guests from Mississippi to talk about his department’s response to Sandy. “We had no deaths or serious injuries in Monmouth County.  In Katrina, there were almost 2000 deaths,” he said.

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Rasmussen: Respecting Voters Matters More Than Policy

Scott Rasmussen’s column, Respecting Voters Matters More Than Policy, is a must read for all political leaders.  Republican leaders and activists should print two copies…one for the refrigerator door and one for the bathroom mirror.  A third copy to use as a bookmark for the bedside Bible is not a bad idea.

The Republican Party has won a majority of the popular vote just once in the last six elections. That dismal track record followed a party revival in the 1980s, when Ronald Reagan led the GOP to three straight popular vote majorities.

To understand what went wrong, it’s important to remember Reagan was an insurgent candidate who defeated the Republican establishment of his era. When Reagan left office, however, the old establishment reasserted control. They consistently nominated candidates for president who opposed Reagan in 1980 and consistently lost elections.

The difference is that Ronald Reagan believed in the American people and was skeptical of government. Today’s Republican establishment believes in government and is skeptical of the American people. That’s why most Republican voters today believe the party is out of touch with the base.

Consider Mitt Romney’s infamous comments about the 47 percent who are allegedly dependent upon government. After the election, Romney even said that President Obama won by giving “gifts” to these dependent Americans. The Republican establishment grumbles about makers versus takers.

Reagan had a different view. He asked, “How can we love our country and not love our countrymen?” When he passed a major tax reform bill, he was proud that it removed millions of low-income Americans from the income tax rolls. Reagan looked at low-income Americans and saw people who wanted an opportunity to work hard and get ahead. He saw a nation that was happy to extend a helping hand to all who were willing to work.

Read the rest of Scott’s column here.

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Election Chaos Throughout New Jersey

It could be a week or more until New Jersey’s votes are tallied due to the huge increase in provisional ballots cast both at the polls and via the email/fax voting system that Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno announced this week to accommodate voters displaced by Hurricane Sandy.

  is reporting that the vote by fax or email allowance has resulting in mass confusion and fear that thousands of votes will not be counted.  Guadagno extended the deadline to apply for a ballot until 5PM today and the deadline for the ballot to be received until 8PM on Friday.

Thousands of voters are complaining that their emails applying for ballots are bouncing back from full email boxes and that phone numbers are busy or going unanswered.

In addition to the email/fax voting problems, polling places are accepting provisional ballots from displaced voters and from out of state law enforcement/recuse workers who have traveled to New Jersey to assist in the recovery efforts.  Each of those provisional ballots will have to be manually verified before being counted.

Ballots cast by early voters at county election offices throughout the state will have to be checked to be sure that those who took advantage of the early voting privilege did not also go to the polls to vote.

In Middletown, approximately half the the voting districts voted exclusively by paper ballots due to a voting machine programing errors, primarily in the 6th congressional district portion of the Township, according to Mayor Tony Fiore.  “Epic Fail on the part of whoever was in charge of those voting machines,” Fiore said, “the county only provided us with about 50 paper ballots.  We reproduced ballots on our own at a secure location.”

There is record turnout at the polls in Asbury Park and Long Branch, according to a Democratic source.

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Report of Voter Fraud in Monmouth County Early Voting

Jamey and Norman Seldin tell MMM that they witnessed voter fraud in Freehold yesterday while voting early.

From Jamey via facebook:

Art, thought you would be interested in this.  Norm & I went to Freehold to vote early today.  Got there, filled out paperwork and were given a ballot.  Never asked for an ID or anything!  We were in the room voting and an “election aide” asked a woman if she needed help filling out the ballot and she said no, “I am voting for my daughter who is out of town.”  AND THEY LET HER VOTE!!!!!

Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno reported this morning that over 4,000 Monmouth County voters made the trip to Freehold this weekend to vote early.   I wonder how many of them were voting for friends or family.

Jamey Seldin in the owner of Seldin’s Trinket’s, the best jewelery store in Red Bank.  Norm is The Original Stormin Norman, the legendary pianist, singer, songwriter and composer.

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MMM Predictions for Election 2012

By popular demand (from Matt Rooney and a Democratic operative who doesn’t want people to know he/she talks to me) your favorite blogger is shifting his focus away from the Sandy Aftermath and back to politics on this election eve.

Rooney said, “Let’s hear your projection, Gallagher.”  My response: “The power will be off at my house for the rest of the week.”

Here are my predictions:

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Monmouth County Polling Location Updates

Hurricane Sandy alters election locations

FREEHOLD, NJ – The Monmouth County Clerk’s Office and the Monmouth County Board of Elections continue to strive to provide a normal as possible Election Day for residents of Monmouth County in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

In 51 of the 53 Monmouth County municipalities, residents will be voting in their communities. For a complete list of locations, click here.

Provisions have been made for residents in two of the most severely storm-ravaged boroughs to vote in neighboring communities. Sea Bright residents will vote at the Fair Haven Fire House on 645 River Road in Fair Haven. Loch Arbour residents will be voting at the Allenhurst Fire House on 311 Hume Street in Allenhurst. All other residents will vote in their own community.

In 23 of the 53 municipalities of Monmouth County, there will be no changes in polling districts.

However, storm damage has required polling sites to be moved or consolidated in the remaining municipalities. These changes were coordinated with the municipal clerks in each municipality.

For questions about Election Day polling places, please call your municipal clerk.

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