Reddan’s a surprise filer for Township Committee
By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
John J. Reddan, who ran for Township Committee in 2011, was a surprise filer Monday for the Democratic nomination for Hillsborough Township Committee.
He creates a race for the one nomination with Will Kole, the president of the Hillsborough Democrats Community Club in the primary election June 4.
Republicans had one filer the current mayor, Frank DelCore, who will seek a third three-year term.
Mr. Reddan ran in 2011 and finished third in a four-way race won by Republicans Gloria McCauley and Doug Tomson. Mr. Reddan has been a regular attendee at Township Committee meetings this year and was appointed by the all-GOP committee to the Historic Preservation Commission in January.
Mr. Kole’s candidacy was announced last week by the township regular Democratic organization. Mr. Reddan’s announcement was released by the Hillsborough Democratic Alliance, a party offshoot.
Mr. Reddan called public service a “civic duty” and said he “looks forward to having this additional opportunity to give back to the community in which I have lived and raised my family.”
Now retired, Mr. Reddan’s professional background includes more than 25 years at the New York Stock Exchange where he specialized in market surveillance, protecting investors against fraud. He also served as an executive on Board Local 153 Office Professional Employees International Union. He was the chief shop steward and Negotiating Committee member.
He’s a 26-year Hillsborough resident.
Mr. Kole, 26, who is the president of the new Democratic Community Club and was a Democratic candidate for the state Assembly in 2007, was the choice of the local Democratic organization’s screening committee.
Michael Goldberg, the township party chairman, said in an email he was “very surprised” Mr. Reddan filed.
Mr. Reddan “had not given any indication he was interested in pursuing a run for Township Committee and chose not to participate in the process the Hillsborough Democratic Committee established to meet with interested candidates as Mr. Kole did,” Mr. Goldberg said.
”That being said, of course, he is free to exercise his right to file a petition and run in the primary election,” Mr. Goldberg said. “Ultimately, it will be up to the Democratic voters in Hillsborough to choose our candidate, and, once decided, we will take on the challenge of defeating our Republican opponent in November.”
Mr. Reddan said he made his decision in the last week after the party screenings.
”I figured I’d give it a shot,” he said. “We need something to rile them up and this should do it.”
Mr. Reddan is a Democratic District committeeman in Hillsborough and a member of the Hillsborough Democratic Alliance.
”Candidates need to be actively involved in their community and spend time listening to their neighbors in order to be able to develop the right priorities,” he said. “Then, they need to be able to collaborate with colleagues on the Township Committee in order to get things done. I believe that I have those abilities.”
He said Tuesday that one of the problems the country has in government is “there are too many professional politicians who stay in the job too long. It can’t hurt to have new ideas,” he said.