Two Democrats to compete to face MacArthur in fall
Now that the filing deadline for the June 7 primary elections has passed, it appears the biggest local contest for Burlington County voters will be the battle for the Democratic nomination in the race to unseat Republican freshman Tom MacArthur in South Jersey's Third Congressional District.
Now that the filing deadline for the June 7 primary elections has passed, it appears the biggest local contest for Burlington County voters will be the battle for the Democratic nomination in the race to unseat Republican freshman Tom MacArthur in South Jersey's Third Congressional District.
MacArthur, a former insurance company CEO from Toms River, N.J., is running for reelection in the district, which spans a large swath of Burlington and Ocean Counties.
The Burlington County Democratic Committee has endorsed Frederick LaVergne, a loan officer from Delanco. In a rare split, the Ocean County Democratic Committee is supporting Jim Keady, a tavern owner from Spring Lake, N.J., who is known for his 2014 protest against Gov. Christie during a Hurricane Sandy anniversary event.
Keady held up a sign and criticized Christie, saying the governor did not do enough to assist storm victims in rebuilding their damaged homes. After a brief exchange, Christie angrily told him to "sit down and shut up."
LaVergne ran as an independent in the last two elections, vying first against former Republican incumbent Jon Runyan, a former Eagles football player, and Democrat Shelley Adler, whose late husband had been the first Democrat in decades to win the seat in the Republican-dominated district. LaVergne also ran against MacArthur and Democrat Aimee Belgard, now a state Superior Court judge.
In Burlington County, three county government seats also are up for grabs in November. There are no contested seats in the Republican primary. But in the Democratic primary, three endorsed candidates are being challenged by two Bernie Sanders supporters and a third candidate who is running on a local reform platform.
On the Republican side, Latham Tiver, the deputy mayor of Southampton Township, is running for a seat on the five-member freeholder board to replace veteran Freeholder Joe Donnelly, who recently decided against seeking reelection. Freeholder Director Mary Ann O'Brien, of Medford, is running for surrogate after longtime surrogate George Kotch announced he, too, would not seek another term. Sheriff Jean Stanfield, of Westampton, is running for reelection and will be the only incumbent in county-level races in November.
The Democratic Committee is supporting Reva Foster, of Willingboro, for freeholder; James Kostoplis, of Bordentown Township, for sheriff; and Sander Friedman, of Medford, for surrogate. The three candidates ran in 2013 for the same offices.
Jeffrey Epstein, of Maple Shade, and Michael Miller, of Riverside, are running for surrogate and freeholder, respectively, as challengers in a column with Bernie Sanders. Margaret Schweikert, of Delran, is running for freeholder with the Delran Democratic Reform Team.
856-779-3224@JanHefler