Nicholas Girone

Vineland Mayor Perry Barse lost his bid for re-election to a third term, losing 51%-32% to Robert Romano, a police lieutenant. Nicholas Girone finished third with 17%. Romano’s slate of Council candidates were also successful.

Nine New Jersey municipalities will elect mayors in next Tuesday’s non-partisan election: Bradley Beach, Cape May City, Delran, Mahwah, Montclair, Orange, Perth Amboy, Spotswood, and Vineland.

Orange Mayor Mims Hackett, who was indicted last October on charges that he accepted a bribe, is not a candidate for re-election. Six candidates are running to replace him: Councilwoman Tency Eason, Councilman Donald Page; Planning Board Chairman Dwight Holmes; attorney Eldridge Hawkins, Jr., the son of a former Assemblyman;

Vineland Mayor Perry Barse faces a strong challenge in his bid for a third term from Robert Romano, a police lieutenant and the son of Barse’s predecessor. Also running for mayor is Nicholas Girone, a former school administrator.

In Montclair, incumbent Edward Remsen is not seeking re-election – the latest in a long string of one-term mayors. Councilwoman Joyce Michaelson, Councilman Ted Maddox and BikeMontclair founder Jerry Fried are the mayoral candidates.

Vineland Mayor Perry Barse
VINELAND - On the side of a highway in south Jersey, sitting at one of the back tables in the Ramada Inn while Chris Christie spoke in general terms about public corruption, Police Lieutenant Robert Romano smiled grimly with a sense of recognition.

"It’s ironic that Chris Christie’s here, because ethics have been nonexistent in this administration," said Romano, who’s running against two-term Vineland Mayor Perry D. Barse. "The citizens aren’t involved in the process of making decisions. There’s no open door policy. It’s not conducive for people to go see the mayor."

A 35-year veteran of the Vineland Police Department who charged up the street crimes unit for eight years, Romano said Barse has improperly tampered with the qualifications for the departmental directors’ positions, and the result has proved an embarrassment for the Cumberland County city of 56,000 with a budget of $52 million.

"When I’m mayor, I’m going to make sure qualified people are directors of the departments," said Romano. "We’re going to review all the directors’ positions."