BY JENNIFER DOME
Staff Writer
BRICK — Three township residents are now running for the mayor’s seat in the upcoming November election.
Edward C. Mueller, editor and publisher of the Brick Township Town News Sampler, announced his Independent candidacy last week. Mueller, 72, has lived in Brick for 41 years and has never run for the mayor’s seat, or the Township Council.
In order to appear on the general election ballot in November, Mueller will need to collect 100 signatures by primary day, June 7, according to Board of Elections officials.
After Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli announced last month that he will not seek re-election, Councilwoman Kathy Russell said that she will run as the Democratic Party’s candidate for mayor in November. Councilman Stephen Acropolis earned the support of the local Republican Party for his run for mayor.
There are three council seats up for election this year — they are now held by Russell, Gregory Kavanagh and Fred Underwood, all Democrats. Kavanagh and Underwood have announced their decision not to seek re-election. Therefore, the Democrats running for Township Council are: Susanne P. Dyer, Anthony W. Lazroe and William M. McGuire. The Republican candidates are: Domenick Brando, Joseph Sangiovanni and Daniel Toth.
“I just think it’s time for fresh air over at city hall,” Mueller said about his decision to run for mayor.
If elected, Mueller said his newspaper would be placed in a blind trust. A trustee would then have complete control over the newspaper and he would have no part in its publication.
Mueller has run for the Brick Board of Education 10 times. He won a seat on the board in 1994 but was ousted after he was found to have a conflict of interest since the News Sampler publishes the board’s legal notices. Mueller said Monday that there was never a conflict since state law establishes the amount he can charge for running legal notices and the school district is expected to abide by that law.
“This time the issue again will be money and the wise use of the township’s assets,” Mueller stated in a press release. “We have watched with consternation as taxes escalated in recent years while a coalition of Republicans and Democrats have spent with abandon.