Democrats Dan Buriak and Rick Pratt were elected to their first terms on the Borough Council Tuesday, defeating incumbent Bob Patten and newcomer Paul Szewczyk.
By: Scott Morgan
HIGHTSTOWN All four Borough Council candidates said they ran the best races they could, but in the end, the voters sided with the Democrats.
Dan Buriak and Rick Pratt, who garnered 775 and 683 votes, respectively, claimed the two council seats up for election Tuesday, defeating Republican Paul Szewczyk and ousting incumbent Republican Councilman Bob Patten, who received 588 and 596 votes, respectively.
This was the first time Mr. Buriak, Mr. Pratt or Mr. Szewczyk have sought public office.
Mr. Buriak, despite being "a little tired" in the wake of Election Day, said he attributes his and Mr. Pratt’s success to a broad support base in the borough which cut through strict party lines.
"I think we appealed across the board to both ‘old’ Hightstown and ‘new’ Hightstown," Mr. Buriak said. He defined "old" and "new" Hightstown as the historic, established borough and the new, future-minded borough. He added, "It makes it a lot easier to go into office knowing you have such broad support."
Mr. Pratt said the victory stemmed from his and Mr. Buriak’s "action-oriented platform. Rather than pointing out problems, we pointed out problems and offered solutions."
Both Mr. Buriak and Mr. Pratt said they enjoyed the issues-oriented race and commended the cordiality and respect offered them by Mr. Patten and Mr. Szewczyk.
"We didn’t feel we were running against opponents," Mr. Pratt said. "We weren’t on different sides."
Mr. Szewczyk said he is "of course" disappointed, but has no regrets and no hard feelings.
"I did all the things I wanted to do," he said. "I can’t look back and find anything I wouldn’t do again."
As for his opponents, Mr. Szewczyk said he believes the borough will be "well-served" with Mr. Buriak and Mr. Pratt on council.
"Dan and Rick ran a good campaign and sold their concept very effectively," he said. "I wish them well."
Mr. Patten said he believes he ran the best race he could and that he supports the councilmen-elect’s efforts to make the community better. However, he said he feels the Democratic sweep was due to partisan voting.
"I’m disappointed in the voters for voting straight down a column rather than looking at individuals," he said. "I felt my experience and leadership were strong decision-making criteria."
Borough voters favored the Democrats in every race on the ballot governor, state Senate, General Assembly, county freeholder, county surrogate and Borough Council.
Of the 2,526 registered voters in the borough, 1,375, or 54.4 percent, cast a vote at the polls or as absentees.
As for future political involvement in the borough, Mr. Szewczyk said he presently has no plans to run for election next year, but said he may consider joining committees or organizations toward which he feels strongly. Mr. Patten said he "would love to run next year," and did not discount the idea of seeking the mayoral seat.
In next year’s election, both Mayor Amy Aughenbaugh’s and Councilwoman Nancy Walker-Laudenberger’s seats will be available.
The future for Mr. Buriak and Mr. Pratt will be busy, starting soon, Mr. Pratt said. While Mr. Buriak said he would like to say he is going to Disney World, the reality is the pair will sit in on the Borough Council’s executive sessions (without official powers until inauguration) and continue to organize their agendas, said Mr. Pratt.
"The primary thing is to join the mayor’s team and action the revitalization forward," Mr. Buriak said. He said next week it is time to help organize the Hightstown Engine Company No. 1’s efforts to hang the holiday lights around the borough.
"There is no down time," he said.
While both Mr. Buriak and Mr. Pratt said they enjoyed the campaign trail, they said they were eager to get started. They will assume office in January.