One slate of candidates in Delran says its campaign spending is a necessary defensive move.

Its political opponents say it's desperation.

Whatever you call it, the three Republican-backed candidates in Delran have spent almost $61,000 targeting a township that has just 9,374 voters for Tuesday's election.

That's more than double what they spent at this time in the previous election, two years ago, and significantly more than they have spent at this point in any election in recent history. This year, they have the Democrat-backed slate's spending beat 3 to 1.

"For such a small town, yeah, that's a lot of money, and that's a lot of money when you consider that Republicans have such a strong edge there," said Peter Woolley, a political science professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Delran is nominally nonpartisan, but like many towns that share the designation, its officials and political candidates make no secret of their party affiliation. Most of the Republican-backed slate's money so far has been contributed through the Delran Republican Club.

Consider that spending last year in nonpartisan Evesham - the county's most-populated municipality, with three times Delran's number of registered voters - was $71,432.55 for the Democrat-affiliated slate and $82,400 for their Republican-affiliated opponents. Evesham does not have an election this year.

The Republican-backed slate in Delran has spent $52,300 on television commercials, which have been playing on the likes of ESPN and the History Channel.

Delran is Burlington County's marquee nonpartisan race, and party leaders are tracking it closely because two open council seats and an open mayoral seat put control at stake for the GOP-dominated government.

"When I'm accused of certain things, lies are being spread about us, incorrect statements [are being made], it's my obligation and my running mates' obligation to . . . counter those lies with the truth," said Councilman Michael Chinnici, who is running for mayor against Keith Paris, the only Democrat-affiliated council member.

"And if that costs money," he added, "then I will do that."

"I think they feel that their political machine . . . is in jeopardy of being overtaken," said Paris.

Running with Chinnici for a council seat are Robert Gleaner and Pauline Gebhardt. Paris' running mates are Gary Catrambone and John Moran.

Tension further rose in the contest this week when Chinnici filed an ethics complaint against Paris with the Local Finance Board of the state Department of Community Affairs. He claimed his opponent had "hit a new ethical low point" by holding a political rally in the township municipal building Wednesday night in the place of a council work session that was canceled because of a light agenda.

Paris said that after Chinnici could not make it back to town that night, he reached out to other council members and Gleaner, also a member of the zoning board. He wanted to field questions from residents on the budget and the controversial expansion of an apartment complex known as Hunters Glen.

In the end, only he and Catrambone were there to speak to roughly 20 residents Paris said attended.