Dirty laundry

One thing you can say about Middlesex Borough politics – it’s never boring, at least not for too long.

Conflict and disagreement always seem to be just around the corner, even if one-half of the traditional two-party system is pretty much non-existent.

The borough recently started its fifth straight year of complete elected Republican rule and differences within the GOP have spilled out into the open.

Borough Councilman Martin Quinn – one of two Republican incumbents whose term expires at year’s end – has opted not to seek re-election. Quinn did not participate in a prospective candidate screening on Feb. 5 and was critical of the Middlesex Borough Republican Organization’s leadership in a statement explaining his decision.

Not long before the screening, MBRO secretary Mark Holmes resigned from that position. Holmes contends the screening committee was not formed in compliance with the local GOP’s by-laws.

And then, a social media confrontation erupted on Facebook. Former Republican Council President Jim Eodice commented that he’d once been “pressured” by leadership, but refused to consider late bids for a professional services contract from firms who’d been “good to” the party. 

In his Thursday, Feb. 8 statement, Quinn wrote that a family matter and political differences with local Republican Party leaders combined to spur him out of seeking re-election in 2024.

The personal matter relates to the passing of Quinn’s father in March 2023. Quinn and his sister are probating their dad’s estate and then have work to do on their father’s home to get it ready for sale.

“That process is going to end up taking quite a bit of my time,” Quinn wrote. “In light of that, I opted not to run this year.”

But Quinn also had criticism for unnamed MBRO leadership, acknowledging he’s had differences with the party. One that Quinn specified was last year’s Republican endorsement of Kevin Dotey to run for council.

“Not that I think the screening committee would have picked me to be honest,” Quinn wrote. “Party leadership and I have some serious disagreements with the debacle last year running Kevin Dotey.”

Previously, Dotey served as a Democratic councilman. Prior to 2023, Dotey’s final run for office as a Democrat was in 2019 when he shared a losing ticket with then-Mayor Ron DiMura. About five weeks after the election, DiMura was indicted on charges he laundered campaign donations through a scholarship fund and bilked private investors in a Ponzi scheme. Dotey was elected to the council as a Republican last year while running unopposed.

“I may run as an independent or a Republican in the future, but only after party leadership changes,” Quinn added. “I keep finding current leadership saying one thing, then doing something different which makes it hard to trust anything they are saying.”

GOP Chairman Steve Greco responded to Quinn’s criticism. “In the 2023 election the Republican Party approved the candidate brought forward by the Campaign Committee, Kevin Dotey for Borough Council,” Greco wrote in an email. “The organization is proud of our accomplishments as we stay committed to doing more for our borough as we continue to keep Middlesex moving in the right direction.”

“Our members, that volunteer their time, are committed to contributing positively and are laser focused on building things that are good for Middlesex Borough, making Middlesex Borough a better place to live and work in,” Greco concluded.

This year’s screening committee recommendation will be brought to the entire MBRO at its Feb. 15 meeting, according to Greco. Holmes asserts the GOP’s appointment of former Councilman Mike Hompesch last November as screening committee chair was done contrary to the organization’s by-laws.

Those by-laws, Holmes notes, lay out that the MBRO is charged with electing a screening committee, and then the screening group is to pick its chairman. Holmes said he brought his concern to Hompesch before his resignation.

Meanwhile, the recent Inside – Middlesex post, “Let the games begin,” – which noted the start of the 2024 political season – spurred several Facebook comments including those by Eodice. He included screen shots of text messages from Hompesch to illustrate his claims.

“Any of us who have gone against the party’s ‘leadership’ have been slowly whittled out of relevance…Quinn, Eodice, (Councilman Jeremiah) Carnes…and (former Mayor John) Madden too,” Quinn chimed in on Facebook. 

Quinn added, “the fights haven’t all happened in public.”

As the local Republican Party airs dirty laundry, noticeably absent is the Middlesex Borough Democratic Organization. The Democratic Party did not field candidates in 2023 and has given no hint it might do so this year.

In 2023, Dotey, fellow Councilman Michael Conahan, and Mayor Jack Mikolajczyk all ran unopposed on the GOP ticket for their respective positions.

Even if the Democrats again remain silent, the MBRO has opened the door to competitive primary races for its voting district rep seats in this year’s primary.

The MBRO’s by-laws formerly stated that each district was to have one male and one female rep. Those positions are elected in the Republican primary every two years.

The by-laws, however, were amended last year to say each district has two reps without respect to gender. That change was enacted to make it easier to fill vacant seats. But it also has the potential to spur contested elections, as there are no longer gender restrictions in place for each of the district seats.

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