Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘Neptune politics’

Jahn Among the Home Owners — Nary a Discouraging Word

Posted in Blogfinger News, Neptune Township News, Ocean Grove news, Politics, tagged , , on May 26, 2012| 30 Comments »

By Charles Layton

Mary Beth Jahn told the Ocean Grove Home Owners Association on Saturday that she should be re-elected to a third term on the Township Committee because of her hard work for constituents.

“I am someone who is more dynamic, I go to more functions, I respond to more emails, more constituent problems,” she said.

Jahn: “I respond to more … constituent problems.”

The audience of approximately 50 Ocean Grovers seemed to agree. In comments from the floor, they responded with an outpouring of support, including specific examples of Jahn’s quick responses to their particular problems.

“I’ve never had a public official respond to me the way you do,” Susan Taylor said. “For one thing, it’s instantaneous.”

Ray DeFaria gave Jahn credit for the quick response by police following the theft of a treasured family heirloom, a wedding ring. He said Jahn took a personal, hands-on interest in the theft, and the ring was recovered.

Joan Cruz suggested that, although the Home Owners Association is a non-partisan group, individual members should write letters to local newspapers supporting Jahn.

Jahn is engaged in a tough fight in the June 5 Democratic primary. She is one of three candidates competing for two seats on the Township Committee — a race that has split the Neptune Democratic Party bitterly. (For background, go here and here and here.) The Neptune Democrats have not endorsed Jahn; the Monmouth County Democratic Party has endorsed her.

Saturday’s meeting had been billed as a “candidates’ forum,” but the other two candidates in the primary race, Dr. Michael Brantley and Nicholas Williams, declined to appear. The audience expressed some resentment that these candidates were unwilling to speak to their organization, although their refusals were somewhat understandable given the degree of Jahn’s support among the membership. Not a single person had a negative word to say against her.

Jahn declined several opportunities to criticize Brantley and Williams because they were not present and “it wouldn’t be fair.” Instead, she emphasized some of her own history as a committeewoman. She cited her opposition to condo development at the North End, her support for a strong police force (she has twice served as police commissioner) and her work as the Township Committee’s liaison to the Township’s finance department.

She said the reason she has taken the lead on the issue of derelict buildings in Ocean Grove is that Mayor Randy Bishop had been criticized by one particularly intractable owner, Marshall Koplitz, as having a conflict of interest because he lives in Ocean Grove and owns a bed and breakfast here.

Committeeman Eric Houghtaling. Photos by Mary Walton

Asked by people in the audience why she and Neptune party officials had parted ways, Jahn repeated her assertion that the split was mainly over her refusal to back James Manning Jr., a former Neptune mayor, for the position of business administrator. Many party leaders have sided with Manning, whom Jahn says she considers unqualified for the post.

Another member of the Township Committee, Eric Houghtaling,  spoke briefly in support of Jahn, calling her “a vital asset to the township.” Another Township Committee member, Kevin McMillan, is working for Jahn’s two opponents. Mayor Bishop, on the other hand, is backing Jahn. Neither Bishop nor McMillan were at Saturday’s meeting.

Read Full Post »

Neptune Dems Vote Against Mary Beth Jahn’s Candidacy — Decision Puts Her at a Disadvantage in a Primary Fight

Posted in Blogfinger News, Neptune Township News, Ocean Grove news, tagged , , , , on March 24, 2012| 38 Comments »

By Charles Layton

District leaders of the Neptune Township Democratic Party voted Saturday not to back incumbent Mary Beth Jahn for reelection to the Township Committee.

The party chose instead to go with Nick Williams, a former school board member and the current chairman of the Neptune Housing Authority.

The action came at a meeting of the local party’s 35 district leaders at Mom’s Kitchen. However, the vote does not mean Jahn won’t be on this spring’s primary ballot; it is a recommendation to the County Democratic Party and its chairman, Victor Scudiery, who will ultimately decide who get’s the “line” — i.e., the party’s official blessing — in a primary race.

In addition to Williams, the local party voted to recommend incumbent Dr. Michael Brantley. The seats of both Brantley and Jahn are up for grabs this year. Whichever two Democratic contenders end up on the general election ballot this fall are considered likely to win, given the Republicans’ relatively weak position in Neptune. The vote by the Democrats’ district leaders was evidently quite close. One source told us that Brantley came in only one vote ahead of Jahn. (The party’s municipal chairman, James Mowczan, told us the vote tally was not made public, and that he didn’t know how close it was.)

When contacted by Blogfinger on Saturday, Jahn did not wish to comment, except to say, “My interests always lie with what’s best for Neptune.” Her colleague on the Township Committee, Mayor Randy Bishop, also declined to comment. Bishop nominated Jahn and spoke on her behalf at Saturday’s meeting.

What happens next is complicated. In order for Jahn to get on the Democratic primary ballot, she must submit a petition with at least 18 signatures. County chairman Scudiery does not decide which of the two contenders, Jahn or Williams, goes on the primary ballot — they both do — but Scudiery does decide which of them gets the endorsement of the party establishment. This is considered quite important, as it determines which candidate gets the more favored ballot position.

The New Jersey primary elections are scheduled for June 5. Only persons registered with a given party may vote in that party’s primary.

UPDATE, Sunday, March 25: In response to speculation on this website as to the reason for Saturday’s action, Jahn wrote that it was prompted by “my refusal to hire an unqualified former Township Committee member” to replace Neptune Business Administrator Phil Huhn, who plans to retire later this year. That former Committee member is James Manning Jr., who has expressed interest in the job. It had been announced that the Township Committee would hold a special meeting last Tuesday to interview candidates, including Manning. However, that meeting was suddenly cancelled without public explanation. To read about Manning and the job position, go here. To read Jahn’s complete statement on that subject, see the comments string to this article.

Meanwhile, in an interview on Sunday, the Neptune Democrats’ municipal chairman, James Mowczan, said he felt sure the leadership of Monmouth County Democrats would not go against the wishes of the Township’s party leaders. “It’s pretty much a done deal that they [Nick Williams and Michael Brantley] will get the party line,” he said. In the years Vic Scudiery has been the county leader, Mowczan said, “he’s never gone against the recommendation of the locals.”

If Mowczan is correct, the June 5 primary ballot would list Williams and Brantley as the endorsed representatives of the Democratic Party. Any other candidate (which is to say, Jahn) would be listed lower on the ballot, a significant disadvantage, he said.

Asked about Jahn’s statement that the local party turned against her over the question of whether James Manning would be the Township’s next business administrator, Mowczan said he hadn’t heard anything about that. “I don’t think it was anything against Mary Beth as much as it was for Nick Williams,” he said.

He said it was “not common” for local party leaders to oppose the candidacy of an incumbent, but that it was also “not unheard of.”

Further update: After reading the above comments, Mary Beth Jahn said that Mowczan told her he was allowing the challenges to her seat “because I did not give him a promise to support Jim Manning for business administrator.”

Read Full Post »