LAWRENCE: Only one candidate for school board so far

By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
With less than three days until the July 28 nominating deadline, only one township resident had filed to run for one of three open seats on the Lawrence Township Board of Education, according to Mercer County officials.
Max Ramos, who lives on Woodlane Road, filed his nominating petition Tuesday. He is a 14-year resident of Lawrence and works as a business manager at Hewlett Packard Corp. He has two children enrolled in the Lawrence Township public school district.
Up for grabs are the seats held by Deborah Cherry, Dana Drake and Bill Michaelson. Their terms expire in January 2015. The election will be held in conjunction with the Nov. 4 general election.
Ms. Drake had indicated she would seek re-election, and Mr. Michaelson said he would not be filing for another term. Ms. Cherry was unavailable for comment.
The school board election has been moved to coincide with the Nov. 4 general election, after the Lawrence school board’s decision to move the annual election from April to November. State law allows school districts to hold elections in November.
School board candidates run on a non-partisan basis — not as Democrats or Republicans — even though they will be listed on the same ballot as political party candidates for municipal, county, state and federal elected offices.
School board candidates are placed in a separate section on the ballot, away from the Democrat and Republican partisan political contests.
Although the date of the school board election has changed, the qualifications to run for office have not changed. Candidates for school board must be able to read and write, and be at least 18 years old.
A candidate must be an American citizen and have been a township resident for at least one year. A candidate must be registered to vote.
A candidate must not have an interest in any contract with, or claim against, the school board. A candidate may not be serving on Township Council, and may not hold two elective offices simultaneously. A candidate may not be disqualified from membership on the basis of conviction of certain crimes.
Prospective candidates must file a nominating petition signed by at least 10 registered voters who live in Lawrence Township.
The petitions must be filed at the Mercer County Clerk’s Office — not the school district office — by 4 p.m. on July 28. The county clerk’s office is located at the Mercer County Courthouse at 209 S. Broad Street in Trenton.
School board candidate kits are available online at www.njsba.org/candidacy.