Day after the election November 2012
On the morning after this year's election tilted lawn signs and rain-plastered campaign flyers are all that remain of the previous day's excitement. The fire house is open again for its primary duty. The library doors swing out with its usual weekday collection of seniors and kids and hurried housewives. Some talk of the prospects of a new president. Others about the 80 percent turnout at the polls. Yet after 9,390 plus ballots cast, the future is still unclear, though newly elected council members echo the federal mandate for change.
For president,
Secaucus preferred George Bush to Bill Clinton by 3,400 to 3,062 with a nagging
884 votes for Ross Perot. While at the same time, they supported Democratic
Congressman Robert Torricelli over Republican Patrick Roma, 4176 to 2030.
It is at the local
level that Secaucus created change, casting out all three of the council
incumbents for a new set of fresh faces and perhaps a new view.
Pat DeFerrari, who
won by 94 votes, is hardly new, however, but broke from the Democratic Party
machine and regained her seat after retiring from it in 1982. At a candidate
night in Harmon Cove last week, she said her campaign was based upon
anti-Impreveduto feelings growing in her. She objected to Councilman Anthony
Impreveduto's three government salaries and salaries drawn by members of his
family as part of his legislative office. She also claimed that "the New
Democratic Association existed solely for the re-election of Anthony
Impreveduto."
Her success in
defeating her democratic opponent, John Reilly, may be due to the growing
isolation Harmon Cove has felt since Impreveduto's support of a condo services
bill. John Reilly seemed to neglect that whole part of his ward, appearing for
the first time that night-- 870 votes cast in the third ward came from Harmon
Cove.
Dennis Elwell, who
defeated Impreveduto in the 2nd Ward stressed the growing importance of various
apartment complexes in town, though said it was "a majority of one-and-two
family home owners in the 2nd Ward who were unhappy with Mr.Impreveduto."
Still the apartment
complexes voted more heavily, and he contributed his own success to a much more
vigorous campaign.
"It was a
positive campaign," Elwell said. "I never slandered my
opponent."
Elwell said his goal for his tenure on the council would
be "opening up government to it's citizens."
He suggested town
meetings at which the people would speak and the council would listen-- an
opposite situation from the one presently in place.
"Public
officials must consider everybody," he said. "Including Harmon
Cove." He said Harmon Cove has needs just like other parts of town.
Michael J. Grecco,
the lone Democratic winner, said the gap between Harmon Cove and the rest of
the town was largely one made up in the press.
He did admit that
residents there did not get involved in the community for many years, but this
has been changing over the last few years. Grecco said he found encouragement
in the candidates night held there last week as well as by voter turn out.
"The first time
we put of voting booth in Harmon Cove was for a school board election,"
Grecco said. "And only 12 people voted."
He said the just
passed election was going to open up communications between them and the rest
of the town.
"They're going
to find they can no longer remain an island," Grecco said. "Working
together is the only way we're going to achieve anything."
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