By David Kilby, Staff Writer
CRANBURY -— Mayor Winthrop Cody has decided to step down from the Cranbury Township Committee next year, and no petitions have been filed to fill his seat.
Any potential candidates would now have to qualify for the open seat through write-in votes on the day of the primary election June 7, since the deadline for petitions was April 11.
To qualify for candidacy through a write-in vote during the primary election, a candidate must receive at least five percent of the total votes cast in the candidate’s political party in the previous primary election, which was the general assembly election in 2009.
For Cranbury, this would mean a democratic candidate will need six write-in votes and a republican candidate will need 11 write-in votes on June 7 in order to qualify as a candidate.
A candidate from either respective party would have needed the same number of petitions by the April 11 petitions deadline in order to qualify.
”It’ll be interesting to see whose name is written in,” said Committeeman Dave Cook, a democrat. “This is the first time, at least that I know of, when both parties have no candidates.”
”It was news to a lot of people that Win wasn’t going to run,” he said. “Whether that changes people’s mind, we’ll see. Normally running against an incumbent is harder than running in an open slate, which is basically what we have now.”
After the primary election, the committee will see who has enough write-in votes to qualify as a candidate.
”Then we’re off to the races,” Mr. Cook said. “It will make it interesting,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what party wins. I just want somebody who has a commitment to Cranbury at heart like the four of us do.”
Committeeman Dan Mulligan, a republican, said the seat is open to any individual who decides to take up the task.
”Hopefully someone decides to run,” he said.
”We’re still looking,” said Committeeman Glenn Johnson, a democrat. “We hope we’ll have someone by primary day.”
”You always hope to get someone who has been in town for a while, who’s had the chance to get to know people a bit,” he said. “Someone with business experience, or who has been exposed to budgeting of some kind, in a business or even a charitable organization, any experience like that would help once he or she is on the township committee.”
Committeeman Jay Taylor, a republican, said he enjoyed working with Mayor Cody.
”I’m sure he made a well thought out decision,” Mr. Taylor said.
Mayor Cody said he isn’t running next year because his employer, iGate business and technology consultants, “has gone through some major acquisitions that give me a much larger role,” he said.
He said in result he is not certain he will have the time to help the people of Cranbury as much as he could before, especially since his new responsibilities will require a great deal of traveling.
Mayor Cody has served on the committee for three years.
”I’ve enjoyed helping the town,” he said. “I wanted to help out.”
The polls for the primary elections will be open June 7 from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Town Hall.

