Burlington County Republicans will run Florence Township Councilman Bruce Garganio and Medford Councilwoman Mary Ann O'Brien for Freeholder as the GOP seeks to retain their 3-2 majority in November.  Two longtime Republican incumbents, Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik, are not seeking re-election. Republicans lost two Freeholder seats and the County Clerk office in 2008.

Burlington County Freeholders Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik both announced today that they will not seek reelection, leaving Republicans without any incumbents on the ticket in November. 

In a joint letter to Burlington County Republican Chairman Bill Layton, Haines and Wujcik said that they came to their decisions after “several weeks of introspection, discussions and dliberation.”

“In the end, our decision was based not on any one factor, but several.  Among these is the need to ensure upper mobility in the Republican organization, and to give other qualified individuals an opportunity to serve in County government,” read the letter.  

Layton said that the two were “outstanding public servants whose leadership and commitment have made Burlington County a better place to raise a family and retire, while carrying on a long, rich tradition of fiscally responsible, environmentally friendly Republican leadership here in Burlington County.”

Burlington County Democrats have picked a councilwoman and a labor leader to run for freeholder in what is expected to be a hotly contested race.

Democrats have picked Mount Holly Councilwoman Kimberly Kersey, who has served on that body for less than a year, and IBEW Local 98 Leader Jim Bernard, a telecommunications technician from Cinnaminson, to run against for the seats currently held by Republicans Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik, who are both considering retiring when their terms are up.

Democrats are confident going into this year’s race, as they rode a wave last year to pick up two freeholder seats.  This year, Republicans are defending their 3-2 majority on the board. 

Burlington County Republican Chairman Bill Layton doubts his party will have to defend two open freeholder seats this year, when control of the board hanging in the balance.  But even if they do, Layton said it won't make a difference.

"It doesn't matter if there are two vacancies or not. Last year we lost an election because of Barack Obama, and this year that dynamic has changed.  We have Chris Christie at the top of the ticket," he said.

Both Jim Wujcik and Bill Haines - the only freeholders up for reelection -- are mulling retirement.

While Layton was less certain about Wujcik, he was confident that Haines would decide to give it another go.

"Bill Haines has been a great freeholder, and he's contemplated running for reelection a few times during the last couple elections he's run," Layton said.  "I think he indicated pretty clearly that he's interested in running and a lot of things changed when Aubrey [Fenton] and Stacey [Jordan] lost."

Burlington County Freeholder Bill Haines, Jr. is considering retiring at the end of his current term, a move that could make the Republicans’ 3-2 majority on the board even more tenuous.  

“I’m still trying to decide what I’m going to do about freeholder,” said Haines, who this year finishes up his fifth term.

Haines, a Republican who’s sometimes known as “Cranberry Bill,” said that the expansion of his cranberry and blueberry farming business is the main reason he’s considering retiring from the political world.  

The fact that control of the freeholder board is up this year, with Republicans holding just a one seat majority over Democrats, complicates matters.  

“I probably would have made the decision a long time ago if Aubrey Fenton and Stacey Jordan had won the last time, but with control up it makes the decision more difficult,” he said.

Majority control of the Board of Chosen Freeholders could flip in four of New Jersey’s 21 counties in November 2009: Atlantic, Burlington, Monmouth and Salem.  In Burlington, Republicans currently have a 3-2 majority after Democrats won two seats last month – their first wins in Freeholder races in two decades.  Two veteran Republican Freeholders are up for re-election in 2009: Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik.  Democrats need to beat one of the two incumbents to win control. 

In Monmouth County, Democrats won their first majority since 1986 when Amy Mallet’s victory in a recount gave them 3-2 control.  Democrat Barbara McMorrow is expected to seek re-election to a second term, and Republicans can regain control if they can unseat her next year.

In Salem County, Democrats have a 5-2 majority after Republicans picked up the open seat of retiring Democratic Freeholder Charles Sullivan, who passed away last Tuesday after a long illness.  Two Democratic incumbents, Beth Timberman and Jeffrey Hogan, are up in 2009.  Republicans would need to win both seats to take control. 

In Atlantic County, where Democrats picked up a Freeholder seat in the last election (and lost a five-term Sheriff), Republicans have a 6-3 majority.  Three Republicans are up next year: At-Large Freeholder Frank Giordano, who was elected as a Democrat in 2006 (he defeated incumbent Frank Finnerty) and then switched parties last year; District 2 Freeholder Thomas Russo, and District 5 Freeholder James Curcio.  Democrats would have to oust two of the three GOP incumbents to take control.

State Sen. Diane Allen has stopped short of entering the race for Jim Saxton’s House seat, or even announcing an exploratory committee.  Instead, she has formed a Congressional Campaign Advisory Committee as a prelude to a bid for the open third district House seat.  Burlington County Sheriff Jean Stanfield and Freeholders Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik will serve on the committee.

Rev. Aubrey Fenton, a Republican Freeholder from Burlington County, with Rep. Jim SaxtonRev. Aubrey Fenton was as shocked as any other Republican to hear that 12-term Rep. Jim Saxton’s would not seek re-election. But after getting the news on Friday, Fenton shut himself off from the political world as he typically does on weekends, taking sanctuary in his church to focus on his Sunday sermon.

So it wasn’t until Monday that the 37-year-old Burlington County Freeholder saw published reports that Burlington County GOP leader Glenn Paulsen, who’s feuding with potential congressional candidate state Sen. Diane Allen -- the early favorite for the Republican nomination – was talking up a potential Fenton run.

Paulsen later told PolitickerNJ.com that Republicans ought to look into supporting the candidacy of Fenton, an African-American, as an opportunity for the national party to reach out to minority voters. Plus, he said, Fenton is more socially conservative than Allen, meshing with the national party’s stance on issues like abortion and gay marriage more than the moderate Allen.

The field of potential Republican candidates to replace Jim Saxton next year is still large, but a few of the names first floated have removed themselves from consideration.

Republican Jim Saxton won re-election to a 12th term with 58% of the vote in 2006 in a district that George W. Bush carried with 51% in 2004. The open seat could be competitive in 2008. The GOP has a huge field of potential candidates; the Democrats will run State Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman John Adler, who had said in September that he would challenge Saxton.