Caliguire downplays edge as incumbent

By: Steve Rauscher
   MONTGOMERY — Christmas came early for Republican Township Committee candidate Mark Caliguire.
   Mr. Caliguire was chosen Sept. 6 by the Township Committee to replace Ali Henkel — the Republican-turned-Democrat who resigned in early August to move to Vermont — giving him the advantage of incumbency in his upcoming contest with Democrat Karen Wintress to fill the final year of a three-year term Jim Irish had been serving before his resignation in January.
   Though Ms. Henkel announced her resignation a month ago, Mr. Caliguire said he didn’t find out he would be her successor until just before the Sept. 6 Township Committee meeting.
   "I was surprised," he said. "But I got a little heads-up. I did come in a tie, you know."
   Mr. Caliguire, necktie and all, was sworn in by Township Attorney Kristina Hadinger and took his seat immediately after his fellow four committee members had unanimously voted him in.
   The committee considered Mr. Caliguire’s fellow Republican Township Committee candidates Fred Gladstone and Paul Kadri, but opted for Mr. Caliguire, expressing the belief he had more time available this fall. Mr. Caliguire said neither he nor his fellow candidates lobbied for the vacant seat, preferring to leave it up to the committee.
   "We’re all running together," he said. "So we just sat back and let the committee do what it had to do."
   Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Kadri will be running for the two three-year terms up for grabs on the committee this November.
   Though incumbency is generally considered an advantage in an election, Mr. Caliguire played down his new-found edge.
   "I think that people look at the qualifications of the candidates running," he said. "And they make their decisions based on that."
   Mr. Caliguire said his qualifications can be traced to his early entry into politics, following his graduation from Georgetown Law School, as a deputy attorney general under Gov. Thomas Kean.
   "It was a good opportunity to get some early trial experience," he said. Serving under Attorney General Cary Edwards, Mr. Caliguire left the state’s employ to work on Mr. Edwards’ unsuccessful campaign for governor in 1989.
   "I’ve always been interested in politics," he said. "But I’m interested in volunteering and public service as a way to give back to the community."
   Mr. Caliguire has been a part of the Montgomery community since 1997, when he moved from West Windsor.
   "When we lived in West Windsor, I used to do a lot of bicycling on The Great Road (in Montgomery) … and I used to brag to my friends in North Jersey that I could go just a few miles from Princeton and ride through this beautiful area with farms and horses and cornfields," he said. "And when it came time to raise a family, we liked the fact that Montgomery has such rural charm, but also has excellent schools."
   Since his arrival in the township, Mr. Caliguire has spent time away from his current job as president of specialty paper company ANW Crestwood Inc., coaching baseball and soccer in the township’s youth leagues. A New Jersey resident for most of his life, he said his experiences in other areas of the state have helped him set priorities for his goals as a township committeeman.
   "I grew up in Bergen County and there’s not a lot of open space left there, which makes me sensitive to it," he said. "Montgomery’s been very successful in preserving its open space, and I’d love to continue with that."
   Part and parcel of open-space preservation plans, Mr. Caliguire said, is the township’s Master Plan revision, which he believes is the most important issue for the township to deal with.
   "Given that it’s a blueprint for potential development and potential traffic flow, it will clearly have a huge impact on the town’s future," he said.
   And now, Mr. Caliguire will get his chance to shape that impact, four months ahead of schedule.