UPDATED 3/17 with a statement from trustee Janine Bauer.
The candidates for South Orange Village President and Trustees were announced yesterday. Petitions were due to the Village Clerk’s office at 4 p.m. The roster of candidates is as follows:
Village President:
Alex Torpey
Janine Bauer
Village Trustees:
Howard Levison
Mark Rosner
Deborah Davis-Ford
Alyssa Aaronson
There are three open trustee spots. Levison, Rosner and Davis-Ford all are running for re-election; Aaronson is running for the first time.
Torpey, a 23-year-old newcomer to the South Orange election scene, was the first to announce his candidacy a few weeks ago. Bauer has served as a trustee since 2007.
Shortly before the filing deadline, Douglas Newman issued this statement to South Orange Patch announcing he would not be running for a second-term. Reached by email, he said, “With respect to those who have submitted petitions, out of respect for the process, I will wait until after they’re certified by the Village Clerk.”
Torpey commented via email: “Our campaign isn’t really about what Doug Newman has or hasn’t done or what Janine Bauer has or hasn’t done. It’s about the future of South Orange. It’s about how we will be a leader in public safety, innovative IT solutions that lower government operating costs and how we will create a new era of inclusive and accessible local government.”
Baristanet attempted to reach Bauer but has yet to hear back. We’ll update the story with her comments., who wrote back with comments on March 17.
“Campaigns are about ideas, but governing requires more that,” she said. “Governing means building consensus across multiple constituencies and getting things done. My Pure Progress colleagues for trustee and I have a record of experience in making South Orange’s government open, transparent and responsive to the public, reducing debt and the level of tax increases, while maintaining or improving services, pursuing quality of life measures and implementing technological solutions to reduce costs.”
The election will be held on May 10. The Board of Trustees consists of six individuals who serve four-year terms; three trustees are elected every other year. The Village President also serves a four-year term. All are unpaid positions.
Photo by Jim Henderson from Wikipedia.
