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Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Plainfield election results


Plainfield results as reported by the Ledger.

22nd Legislative District results, as reported by the Ledger.
As predicted, Plainfield voter turnout was on the light side Tuesday. Municipal Clerk 'AJ' Jalloh has posted a downloadable copy of the unofficial Plainfield results for those who like granular detail down to the voting district level (see here, PDF).

Councilor Cory Storch won re-election to his third term over GOP challenger Bill Michelson by a vote of 1,051 to 270. Wards 1/4 candidate Vera Greaves was unopposed.

Michelson should be congratulated for running at all, since the local GOP presence has dwindled over the years to a mere shadow of its former self.

For the 22nd District Assembly race, Plainfield resident and GOP candidate Joan Van Pelt did very well indeed facing off against Democratic incumbents Linda Stender and Jerry Green. With 10,320 votes, Van Pelt was fewer than 4,000 votes behind Green (14,242), though the spread with Stender was considerably larger (14,974).

Again, Van Pelt is to be commended for having the moxie to run at all in a district that is stacked in favor of Democrats.

America has had a two-party system since the days when Thomas Jefferson and James Madison organized the Democratic-Republican party, culminating in Jefferson's election as president in the 'Revolution of 1800'.

Difficult as it is for the minority party to offer viable candidates and fund their campaigns (the Republican Party offered no help to either Plainfield candidate), it is important to make the effort and offer voters truly alternative choices on the issues of the day. (Aside: our Democratic friends in Somerset County find themselves in a position exactly analogous to that of Plainfield Republicans -- with the one proviso that there is evidence of growing Democratic presence in some towns formerly considered solidly Republican.)

Van Pelt and Michelson join Jim Pivnichny (Joan's husband) who ran for Mayor against Robinson-Briggs in holding up the banner of the Grand Old Party.

For which everyone -- Democrats as well as Republicans -- should be appreciative.



-- Dan Damon [follow]

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1 comments:

Anonymous said...

& Plainfield voters will keep smashing their heads into the same old wall and wondering why they don't get a different result......

Sad.