Multiple area residents are running for seats on state, county and local governing bodies in the election Nov. 7.
State Legislature
Atlantic County Commissioner Caren Fitzpatrick, a Democrat from Linwood, is challenging state Sen. Vince Polistina of Egg Harbor Township.
Fitzpatrick was first elected to the board in 2017 and won a second term in 2020.
Fitzpatrick, who has experience owning and operating a small business, is joined by Somers Point resident Elizabeth “Lisa” Bender, a real estate agent and environmental activist who served in AmeriCorps, and Alphonso Harrell of Egg Harbor Township.
Bender and Harrell are seeking seats in the Assembly held by former Atlantic City mayor Don Guardian and former deputy attorney general Claire Swift of Margate.
Polistina, Guardian and Swift defeated state Sen. Vince Mazzeo, a Democrat from Northfield, Fitzpatrick and former Assemblyman John Armato in 2021.
Polistina previously served in the Assembly from 2008-12. Prior to that, he served as a member of the Atlantic County Republican Campaign Committee and as chairman of the Atlantic County Republican Finance Committee.
County Commission
Jordan Road School teacher Kim O’Brien, head of the Somers Point Democrat Club, and Habib Rehman of Egg Harbor Township are vying for two at-large seats on the Republican-dominated Atlantic County Board of Commissioners.
They are facing off against longtime incumbent John Risley of Egg Harbor Township and Linwood City Councilwoman June Byrnes, a newcomer to county politics this year.
Byrnes, a real estate agent, ran unopposed for her Ward I seat in 2018 after Councilman Elliot Beinfest chose not to run for re-election. She was re-elected unopposed in 2021.
County sheriff
Sheriff Eric Scheffler of Northfield, a Democrat first elected to the position in 2017, is facing another challenge from Republican Joe O’Donoghue of Egg Harbor Township.
Scheffler retired as a lieutenant with the Atlantic City Police Department, where he served from 1992 to 2015. He later worked as a one-on-one special-education aide for Mainland Regional High School from 2015-17.
O’Donoghue has more than 40 years of law enforcement experience, having served as a sergeant with the state Superior Court and 18 years with the Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office. He also has held leadership positions in several police unions including PBA Locals 77 and 243 in Atlantic County.
Law enforcement is a tradition in the O’Donoghue family, with three of his children being sworn law enforcement officers serving in Atlantic County and a fourth who serves with the New Jersey State Department of Corrections.
The two faced off in 2020, with Scheffler winning 69,197 to 58,503.
Somers Point
Jack Glasser has decided not to seek re-election, opening the door for a new mayor in Somers Point. Vying for the position are Republican former councilman Dennis Tapp and Democrat Susannah Morgan Slaughter.
Tapp served on City Council from 2003-05 and again from 2010-19 before choosing not to seek re-election. He also was a member of the Somers Point Recreation Board and had been a coach for youth athletics in Somers Point for close to two decades. He retired from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 351 after 37 years.
Slaughter, a registered nurse, is combat rated veteran of the U.S. Air Force who served multiple tours in the Middle East during Operation Enduring Freedom.
The 42-year city resident was on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, treating critical care patients. She works as a case manager of the Intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation Center for AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center.
The living kidney donor (as of May 10, 2023) said she is raising her 15-year-old son in the city where she was proud to grow up. She is the step-daughter of former councilman and mayor John DiMaria.
Republican incumbent Richard DePamphilis is facing a challenge for the Ward I seat from Ann Marie Gibbs, while incumbent Democrat Karen Bruno will take on Charlie Haberkorn, co-chairman of the Economic Development Advisory Commission.
Incumbent John Shields is running unopposed for his seat representing Somers Point on the Mainland Regional High School Board of Education.
Two incumbents and a newcomer are seeking three seats on the Somers Point school board. Police officer Nick Wagner and physical therapist Kathleen Dolton are seeking re-election, while Judson Moore is seeking his first term on the school board.
Linwood
Mayor Darren Matik, City Council President Eric Ford and Ward II Councilman Adam Walcoff are running unopposed for re-election in Linwood.
Matik, who was elected mayor without opposition in 2019, began serving on City Council in 2012. Ford was appointed in June 2016 to fill an unexpired term in Ward I and won a full three-year term in 2017 and 2020.
Walcoff, a local attorney, was appointed in December 2022.
Emily Ryan and Lisa Bonanno are seeking re-election to two seats on the Linwood Board of Education. There is no declared candidate for the third seat.
Northfield
Mayor Erland Chau is facing a challenge from Robert Zlotnick, president and executive director of Atlantic Prevention Resources.
Chau has been a resident in Northfield for 60 years and has been involved in the local government for more than three decades. The former science teacher at Mainland Regional High School was a city councilman for 23 years and has served nine years as mayor. He also served on the Northfield Zoning Board and Northfield Board of Education.
Councilman David Notaro is seeking re-election against community activist Joan Brennan. Notaro, a self-employed builder and landscaper who owns Notaro Construction and Landscaping, served on the Planning Board and City Council.
The 1989 graduate of Mainland Regional High School was a councilman from 2006-08 before being elected again in 2020.
Council President Tom Polistina is running unopposed in Ward II.
Four people are running for three seats on the Northfield Board of Education. Incumbents Christopher Kennedy and Ruben Garrido are joined in the race by Kelly Geary and Evelyn Perez.
Incumbents Kinjal Patel and Stephen F. Funk are running unopposed for two seats on the Mainland Regional High School Board of Education representing Northfield.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
