MIDDLETOWN — Despite a delay in posting results caused by a glitch in the voting software used by Monmouth County, it was evident among elated Republican supporters that the Middletown GOP had comfortably been re-elected.
Incumbents Mayor Stephanie Murray and Committeeman Anthony Fiore handily beat Democratic challengers George Mardinly and Patrick Short, receiving 19,271 combined votes of the 31,283 total votes cast.
Their victory ensures continued Republican dominance of the Township Committee, which hasn’t included a Democrat since 2009, when Short lost re-election to the post.
Before any supporters had arrived at the banquet hall serving as GOP headquarters on Nov. 4, Fiore said he was looking forward to a sizable voter turnout.
“I think it’s going to be something like 38 or 40 percent,” he said, flipping through television channels to search for coverage of the national election.
There were only about 15 minutes left before the polls closed when supporters started to pile into the room.
Among the Middletown Republicans eagerly awaiting the results was state Sen. Joe Kyrillos (R-13), who said he believed Fiore and Murray would see a lot of support from Middletown residents.
“It’s always hard to say this early, but I think [Murray and Fiore] will be heartened by the results,” Kyrillos said.
With big wins quickly rolling in from several of the township’s 46 districts — some of which Middletown Republican Party Vice Chair Chantal Bouw said have historically been problem areas for the Republicans — few were concerned that the local election would slip through their fingers.
“I think you can call it,” Bouw said as she updated one of several posters tallying the results. “[The Democrats] can’t make up the difference.”
Murray was excited, but still unwilling to go out on a limb and claim victory at such an early stage.
“We’re not calling it just yet,” Murray said. “Let’s just wait and see until it’s official.”
The party saw one of its strongest victories in District 39, where each GOP candidate surpassed 300 votes, winning the district by a ratio of nearly 3-1.
The results, which were hurriedly being transcribed onto a series of posters by supporters and volunteers, continued to reflect a serious Republican advantage — and the crowd was aware.
With plenty of districts still remaining, a Republican victory seemed all but assured, and the din of excited conversation signaled an early start to the victory celebration.
Meanwhile, a television aired election coverage while a small huddle of people watched the screen, anxiously awaiting the results of the national Senate elections to see if the Republicans would seize control of the entire Congress, as well.
When the Middletown candidates officially acknowledged their re-election, the national Republican Party had already gained three of the six seats it needed in the Senate.
The mood was jubilant all around as the candidates stood alongside Middletown Republican Party Chair Peter Carton and Bouw, and addressed the crowd of supporters.
“There’s a lot of people in this room that have worked for many years to make Middletown the best place to be,” Fiore said to resounding applause.
In the end, a Republican candidate carried every district except for three: districts 4, 6 and 7, where the majority voted for Short.
Fiore drew a total of 9,608 and Murray received 9,663 of the total 31,283 votes cast. Short trailed with 6,172 votes and Mardinly with 5,815.