SARCONE: EVESHAM ZONING BOARD APPOINTMENT FOLLOWS USUAL GOP PATRONAGE SCRIPT

SARCONE: EVESHAM ZONING BOARD APPOINTMENT FOLLOWS USUAL GOP PATRONAGE SCRIPT 

For Immediate Release

Contact: Chris Fifis - 609-206-1678 

(July 21, 2009) – Just three weeks into its reign over Evesham Township, the Burlington County Republican Party strengthened its grip over municipal patronage positions last night with the appointment of Marilyn Williamson as chair of the township zoning board.

"This is exactly why I left the Burlington County Republican Party," said former Evesham Deputy Mayor Debbie Sarcone, a Democratic candidate for the State Assembly in the Eighth Legislative District. “If you are a card-carrying member of the party, you receive multiple job appointments to ensure, with no regard for the taxpayers, that the "Paulsens 20" (www.paulsens20.com) donors are getting their contracts."

According to county and township records, this zoning board appointment becomes the sixth Republican patronage position being held by Williamson. Before last night, she already served as Evesham Township Republican Party chair and was a member of the Evesham Township Republican Executive Board, the Burlington County College Board of Trustees and the Evesham Fall Festival committee (which controls money from the major seasonal event) as well as being a paid staff member of the Republican-ruled Eighth Legislative District office in Medford. 

In addition, Williamson's husband and son work for the Evesham Municipal Utilities Authority.

"It's exactly how the GOP has worked for the last 30 years," said Sarcone. "If you are a ‘team player,' you will be rewarded with powerful, lucrative political positions in many different areas of the county that control appointments and the awarding of contracts.

"Within this past month,” Sarcone said, “as the Republican party has taken control over the township with the election of Howarth, Hackman and Croft, orders sent out by Boss Paulsen through Bill Layton to appoint members of his Mount Laurel law firm, Capehart and Scatchard, as township solicitor and township prosecutor have been flawlessly followed.

“They also took a first vote to rescind an ordinance to save money and ensure strong voter turnout by letting township residents decide if they want to change their municipal election date from May to November,” Sarcone said. “Now, the zoning board will be under their control as well.

“This latest appointment and their previous actions have absolutely nothing to do with improving the lives of Evesham's 50,000 residents,” Sarcone said, “and everything to do with improving the financial well being of the 'Paulsen's 20' and the Burlington County Republican elite.”

To learn more about Sarcone and her State Assembly running mate and fellow Democrat, former U.S. Navy SEAL and Iraq War veteran Bill Brown, please visit www.ChangeTrentonNow.com.