By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Montgomery Township and Rocky Hill Borough voters will go to the polls Nov. 7 to choose candidates for elected office, from local municipal officials and school board members to county- and state-level offices.
The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
At the local level, Montgomery Township voters are being offered a choice between Republican Party nominee David Cheskis and Democratic Party nominee Sadaf F. Jaffer to fill one seat on Township Committee. Incumbent Township Committeeman Richard Smith is not seeking re-election. The term is for three years.
In Rocky Hill Borough, voters will choose a mayor and three Borough Council members.
Mayor Philip Kartsonis, who is running on the “Rocky Hill United” ticket, is unopposed in his quest to be elected mayor, filling out an unexpired term that ends in 2018. He was elected mayor from among Borough Council members after former Mayor Jeff Donahue resigned in April.
Incumbent Borough Councilmen William “Billy” Dawson and Robert Uhrik are running unopposed for re-election to the governing body. Dawson and Uhrik are Democrats. The term is for three years.
Amy Kirtland, who is running on the “One Rocky Hill Party” ticket, is unopposed in her quest to fill out an unexpired term on the Borough Council. The vacancy was created by the resignation of former Councilman Anthony Sciaraffo.
Voters in both towns will choose from among four candidates to serve on the Montgomery Township Public School District’s Board of Education – incumbent Amy Miller and newcomers Paul Blodgett, Paul M. Johnson and Ranajana R. Rao. The term is for three years.
At the top of the ballot, voters will choose between Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, a Republican, and Democratic Party nominee Philip Murphy to become the next Governor of New Jersey. The term is for four years.
One rung below – for State Senate and General Assembly – voters will choose between Republican incumbent State Senator Christopher “Kip” Bateman and Democratic Party challenger Laurie Poppe in the 16th Legislative District. The term is for four years.
For General Assembly in the 16th Legislative District, voters will choose between incumbent Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker and his running mate, Roy Freiman, on the Democratic Party ticket, and former Assemblywoman Donna Simon and her running mate, Somerset County Freeholder Mark Caliguire, on the Republican Party ticket. Caliguire is a former Montgomery Township mayor. Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli is not seeking re-election. The term is for two years.
Somerset County Clerk Brett A. Radi is running for re-election on the Republican Party ticket. He is being opposed by Democratic Party nominee Steve Peter. The term is for five years.
At the Somerset County Board of Chosen Freeholders, incumbent Freeholder Brian D. Levine and his running mate, Brian Gallagher, are seeking election on the Republican Party ticket. They are being opposed by Democratic Party nominees Alex Avellan and Shanel Robinson. The term is for three years.
