Dancer, Malone now face Democrats Grisanti, Dolobowsky for 30th District representation.
By: Cynthia Koons
ALLENTOWN Recently appointed Allentown Borough Councilman Jerry Rovner attempted unsuccessfully to earn a spot on the Republican ballot for the New Jersey General Assembly elections.
Yet he said his run, which cost him a few thousand dollars and a few weeks of time, was worth the effort.
"I had a very strong showing in this area," he said. "I’d do it again."
He was referring to the votes he earned in Allentown. Mr. Rovner won the most votes of the three candidates on the ballot there. He was challenging two incumbents, Assemblymen Ron Dancer and Joe Malone, for one of two seats on the Assembly representing the 30th Legislative District.
In total, Mr. Rovner earned 475 votes. Mr. Dancer captured 3,061 votes and Mr. Malone received 3,039, according to unofficial totals available Tuesday. Official results are expected to be released Friday. Mr. Dancer and Mr. Malone will face Democrats Joseph Grisanti and Mitchel Dolobowsky in the November elections.
"The most disappointing thing was that there are 128 voting districts (and) if you average it out, (there were) about 25 people voting per district," he said. "That’s very sad. One of the biggest problems is no one wants to declare if they’re Republican or Democrat."
Mr. Rovner served as a Democrat on the Allentown Borough Council for 10 years before changing his allegiance to the Republican Party, with which he now plans to be very involved.
"I went to the Republican Unity Breakfast (last week) to make sure everybody’s on the same page," he said. "I’ll be working to help the incumbents survive."
Mr. Rovner had said previously that his motivation for running was that towns such as Allentown and Washington Township were underrepresented in Trenton.
"I hope that by me getting involved (that) we’ll be getting more attention," he said.
Mr. Dancer, who was appointed to the General Assembly in November after multiple attempts at winning the seat, said he believes he represents the entire district from his Jackson office.
"You try to do your best to represent the people," Mr. Dancer said. "That’s why we have a process.
"The major commitment is that you make yourself accessible to all the people in your district," he said. "Whenever they have a problem, you’re here."
He said that he keeps in touch with Allentown by talking to Mayor Stuart Fierstein frequently.
"As a mayor, I speak quite regularly with many of the mayors in our district," he said. Mr. Dancer is the mayor of Plumsted, which falls within the 30th District. The district comprises 15 municipalities in four counties.
Contested primaries in this General Assembly race are not common, but Mr. Dancer said he welcomed the competition.
"It heightens public awareness," he said. "It’s good for the process."
He said he agreed with Mr. Rovner’s stances on both property tax reform and medical malpractice liability issues. He said he believes he will be working with Mr. Rovner in some capacity in the future.
Mr. Malone, Mr. Rovner’s other competitor, said he’s been on the Assembly since 1993 and has never been challenged in the primary.
"We didn’t do anything unusual," he said. "This is just a typical election, nothing profound or earthshaking.
"I think we have a very good record to run on over the past few years," he said.
As for working with Mr. Rovner, he said, he has yet to meet him but he looks forward to it.