Residents hope to have Johnson as write-in candidate with strongest showing
By: Joseph Harvie
Debra Johnson might have lost the Democratic primary to Mayor Frank Gambatese, but her supporters are hoping she can win the general election.
A group of her supporters from the June primary have started a campaign hoping to convince residents to write in her name on Nov. 7.
Jean Dvorak and Donna VanDernark, both of whom are active with the Eastern Villages Association, are spearheading the campaign.
Ms. Dvorak said Tuesday that Ms. Johnson’s primary-campaign supporters were not happy with the current Democratic administration its connection to the Middlesex County Democratic Organization.
"She’s got experience and she is an alternative to the old-boy network," she said. "When she left the local Democratic Party, Debbie was making a break from the connections with the county political machine. She has promised to stick by the promise she made of integrity and stand up for the residents of South Brunswick."
Ms. Johnson, a former mayor, said she is not actively participating in the campaign, but would serve if elected.
"After the primary they approached me to run as a write-in candidate and I said we need to let it go," Ms. Johnson said. "At that point my dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and passed away. After that I couldn’t focus. But they approached me again and asked if I was elected would I serve. And I said I would never turn away if called to service."
Ms. Johnson, who was mayor from 1998 to 2002 and had served from 1994 to 1997 on the Township Committee, opted not to seek re-election in 2002 because her mother became ill. She opted to run in the June primary as an Independent Democrat because she was not satisfied with the leadership of Mayor Gambatese and the Democrats.
Mayor Gambatese won the primary 1,150 to 1,042 in June. Mayor Gambatese is on the ballot running against Republican Lynda Woods Cleary for Mayor.
Following the election, a group of supporters began planning the write-in campaign, partly because they were upset with the tactics used against Ms. Johnson. Her supporters weren’t happy with the negative campaign flier that was distributed prior to the June primary highlighting employment issues Ms. Johnson had with the state, Ms. Dvorak said. The Middlesex County Democratic Organization paid for the flier, which was mailed in May
The final straw for supporters, however, was former state Sen. John Lynch’s guilty plea on bribery and tax evasion charges in Sept. 15. Mr. Lynch, 67, admitted to accepting more than $22,000 from a South Brunswick sand company in 1998 and 1999 in exchange for interceding with a state agency on the firm’s behalf. He also pleaded guilty to an unrelated tax-evasion charge for failing to declare $150,000 in income on a land sale in 1999.
His political action committee, New Directions Through Responsible Leadership, donated $1,500 to the local Democrats in 2003 and 2004, which irked many Johnson supporters, Ms. Dvorak said.
"It was the John Lynch thing that was the straw that broke the camel’s back," Ms. Dvorak said. "We got confirmation that stuff was going in South Brunswick and that dirty political money was being spent in the campaign. And I’ve got a problem with that."
Like Ms. Dvorak, many of Ms. Johnson’s supporters live in the rural eastern section of town and appreciated her stance on warehouse development.
"Debbie has a great deal of integrity," Ms. Dvorak said. "I believed in her when she ran in the primary. And she has been supportive of the things we believe in, in terms of development."
Ms. Dvorak said that write-in campaign is being financed by supporters, who have sent out e-mails and placed repainted signs from the June primary around town.
"We used some funds form the Debra Johnson for Mayor account, but most of it is our own money," Ms. Dvorak said.
Ms. Woods Cleary and Mayor Gambatese both said that Ms. Johnson should not be involved in the write-in campaign. They said that she lost in the primary and should stay out of the November race.
"I think it’s disingenuous of the person, personally," Mayor Gambatese said. "This is a person who says ‘I get beat in the primary I’m finished,’ and now she’s running a write-in campaign."
"When people enter the political arena they should play by the rules," Ms. Woods Cleary said. "The people spoke in June and said no to Debbie Johnson as the Democratic candidate and she should abide by that."

