Uncontested

It appears that for the second straight year, Middlesex Borough voters will have no option when they go to the polls in November to fill seats on their municipal governing body.

The candidate filing deadline for the June primaries came and went on Monday, March 25 with only two Republicans filing to run for a pair of Borough Council seats that are up for election this year.

The GOP candidates are Joint Land Use Board member Joseph DeScenza and Board of Health member Kenneth Griggs Jr. Republican Councilmen Doug Rex and Martin Quinn are not seeking re-election.

No Democrats filed to run for the second consecutive year. Unless Middlesex Borough Democrats write-in candidates in the June primary or an Independent steps forward, the GOP will once again be unchallenged in the general election for municipal seats.

Middlesex Borough joins a growing trend of towns throughout the country having uncontested local races. But the reasons why and circumstances here are much different compared to some other locales.

Although there is likely no 2024 council contest, that may not be the case for Board of Education seats. Six candidates ran for three school board seats in 2023 and the filing deadline for those positions is this summer. In many towns throughout the country, there has been a dearth of school board candidates.

Middlesex Borough Democrats began a losing streak for the mayoralty and council seats starting in 2017. Since then, Republicans have won 15 straight elected council seats and the mayoralty twice. The GOP candidates had Democratic opponents in those first 10 council elections and the first for mayor.

Democratic Mayor Ron DiMura was defeated for re-election in 2019, roughly a month prior to his indictment on charges that he laundered campaign donations through a scholarship fund and bilked private investors in a Ponzi scheme. While no other Democrats were charged in the scandal, DiMura’s lingering taint appears to have dissuaded some from becoming active with the local party.

The local party, Democrats of Middlesex Borough, has not filed campaign finance reports with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission in more than 18 months. The last filing in July 2022 states that the party had roughly $3,700 on hand at that time.

In 2022, the most recent election in which Middlesex Borough Democrats and Republicans squared off, the GOP easily won the two council seats contested.

While it is a growing national trend, unquestioned control by one political party holds disadvantages for constituents, in the opinion of voter analysis organizations.

The website Ballotpedia found that more than 60% of 2023 local elections in 17 states were uncontested. New Jersey was not among the states reviewed.

Twelve Middlesex County towns had mayoral elections last fall, but five of them were uncontested. Middlesex Borough was among those towns as Republican Jack Mikolajczyk ran unopposed for the mayoralty.

Herald-Banner, a Texas-based news organization, opined that contested races “maintain a healthy balance of power” and “ensure officials are held accountable.”

Uncontested races, according to Herald-Banner, “raise concerns about the vitality of political discourse and the potential for complacency within elected offices.”

Commenting on the wave of one-candidate elections, Rutgers University political science professor Ashley Koning said dissatisfaction with public officials is a contributing factor. “People’s attitudes about politics are at an all-time low,” she said.

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