By John Tredrea, Special Writer
Donald Vandegrift will accept the appointment to the Stockton Borough Council to which his write-in victory in the Nov. 5 general election entitles him.
”I’ve contacted the borough clerk (Michele Hovan) and told her that I will accept,” Mr. Vandegrift said Friday.
An 18-year resident of Stockton, he’s a registered Republican who can bring himself to vote Democratic should the issues and/or candidates warrant, he said.
”I’ve voted Democratic a number of times,” he said. A professor of economics at The College of New Jersey for the past 18 years, he earned his bachelor’s degree at William and Mary and a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut.
Did he know he was going to receive write-in votes on Nov. 5?
”Yes. A friend asked me to try to get on council this way, and I agreed,” he said. “I think I can help the town. I plan to try to be quiet on the Council until I’ve learned some things. Stockton is a real good town, it’s been good for me and my family, and I’d like to do something in return.”
He also thinks being on Council can help him in his line of work. “I thought being on Council could help me learn more about how all levels of government work,” he said. “That can be useful information to me as a teacher of economics.”
He and his wife, Kathleen Vandegrift, have three children. Daughters Hope and Mariel are students at South Hunterdon Regional High School. Son Peter is in fourth grade at the elementary school in Stockton.
When he has time, Mr. Vandegrift enjoys active outdoor sports. “I like kayaking, skiing, tennis that kind of thing,” he said.

