OCEAN CITY — The Ocean City and Upper Township boards of education each has three seats up for election this November and seven candidates, a mix of incumbents and newcomers, for those positions, according to the official website of the Cape May County Elections Department.
The filing deadline was 4 p.m. July 31, when candidates had to hand in a petition with at least 10 qualified voter signatures.
As of Wednesday, Aug. 2, according to capemaycountyvotes.com, former Ocean City school board president Joe Clark, now the board’s vice president, did not file paperwork to seek another term, but incumbent Cecelia Galleli-Keyes and Robin Shaffer, who was elected to fill a one-year unexpired term, are running for re-election.
Shaffer joined the board in January with newcomers Catherine Panico and Elizabeth Nicoletti, who ran together largely based on their opposition to new state Board of Education Health and Physical Education standards. They were endorsed by the conservative group Moms for Liberty.
Shaffer is on another slate this fall called “Conservative Family Values” with two other newcomers, Kevin Schaffer and Steve Flogaus. Those three filed a joint petition.
There are three other candidates seeking one of those three seats, Michael Allegretto, Corey Niemiec and Jocelyn Palaganas.
Upper Township
In Upper Township, two of the three incumbents — Rachel Mammele and Thomas McQuillen — are seeking re-election. Incumbent Philip Schaffer did not file for re-election, according to capemaycountyvotes.com.
There are five others who are running in Upper Township — Kelly Ann Emberger, Rebecca Holden, Daniel P. Kilgallon, Christine Stanford and Jeffrey Trulli.
Stanford is running with the slogan “For Public Education,” McQuillen with “Putting Students First” and Emberger with the slogan “Academics Excellence Citizenship.”
Stanford has been vocal about LGBTQ+ rights, having spoken up during public comment at multiple board meetings over the past year to ensure all students feel they have a welcoming, supportive environment.
Although Kilgallon did not list a slogan, when he ran for office in 2022, he said he and his wife weren’t shy about “speaking up for parents’ rights, medical freedom, age-appropriate content and a return of good nature and common sense to the district.”
The Sentinel will be doing profiles of all the candidates for the Ocean City and Upper Township school boards closer to the Nov. 7 elections to help voters learn their backgrounds, positions and priorities so they can make informed choices.
– By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff