Candidates for the 3rd and 4th Ward filed on April 1st in time for the June 4th primary. The candidates are as follows:
| COUNCIL SEAT | ||
|---|---|---|
| 3rd Ward Council | ||
| 4th Ward Council |
Both Republican candidates are current members of council with Gene Antonucci running for a second time against Tanya Torres. Newcomer Mohamed ‘Gino’ Elmarassy, who lives near Girl Scout Park, when reached for comment, stated, “As a Roselle Park resident of 25 years I’m looking forward to speaking with the residents of the 4th ward to hear their concerns and represent them.”
Councilwoman Tanya Torres – who at the beginning of the year stated that she would be returning to being a private citizen – plainly stated when asked if she was, in fact, running again, “No, I’m just holding the line until someone is chosen.”
This marks the first time that a Roselle Park public official has openly stated what has been done by candidates from both parties in the past – as recently as Larissa Chen-Hoenring, Larry Dinardo, Joel Reed, and Marc Caswell – which is having a candidate file for the primary while their respective parties find a suitable replacement to be announced before the September deadline when a candidate nominated in the Primary Election can withdraw from the General Election. A name on the primary ballot is necessary in order for a political party to have a candidate run in the general election in November. If no petition is filed for the primary, the party relinquishes the chance to have any candidate.
In addition, the election for seats on the Democratic County Committee in Roselle Park, which is held every alternating year for each party, will occur in 2013.
Party committee members have the ability to choose a party-endorsed candidate; those are the people who end up being on ballots for the office of mayor and council. Also, all governing body vacancies are filled by candidates who interviewed before their party committee and were chosen by majority vote. Party committee members also have a say in who gets chosen for appointed positions in various municipal boards and committees, even though the final vote is left to the mayor and/or council. Party committee members can recommend the selection of election day poll workers.
Anyone who is 18 years old, a resident of the election district, and is registered to vote as a Democrat has the right to become a committee member. Although the deadline for filing a nominating petition has expired, residents can write-in themselves or the person they choose who lives in their respective district as a committee member as long as that person is registered as a Democrat and receives the most number of votes.
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|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | |||
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| 4 | |||
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Candidates for the Board Of Education (BOE) as well as any person running independently for a municipal office have until 4 p.m. on June 4, 2013 (the day of the primary election) to file a petition in order to be eligible for the general election in November.
The deadline for voters to register to vote in the Primary Election is Tuesday, May 14th. If voting during the Primary, voters must declare a political affiliation.