Contested Races Now for Watchung Hills, Warren BOE This Week

There were no contested races on the ballot this Tuesday either for the Warren Township K-8 school district, or for the Warren Township Committee. But the addition of another write-in candidate for the Warren Township School district has changed that.

The polls in Warren Township are open on Tuesday, Election Day, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Information on polling sites was on sample ballots and is online at the Warren Township website.

On Monday, another write-in candidate, Livio (Mike) Mancino, said he also is seeking election to one of three available seats on the school board. He will compete against one candidate listed on the ballot and two other write-in candidates.

For the school board, only one incumbent — James Sena, who is finishing up his first term — decided to seek re-election. Incumbents Don Huber and Roberta Monahan are not seeking re-election on the grades K-8 Board of Education.

Then the resignation of Warren Board Member John DeBellis created yet another vacancy on the school board — but brought in two new write-in candidates seeking to fill the final two spots on the school board.

Two of the five applicants who earlier this month sought a vacancy on the board created by DeBellis' resignation later announced write-in candidacies for the two other three-year openings on the board.

Those candidates are Celeste Campos, former PTO president at the Mt. Horeb School, and Lisa DiMaggio, a Watchung Hills High School graduate and an educator.

The remainder of DeBellis' term through the end of 2014 will be filled by Len DeMontagnac, who served on the school district's strategic planning committee.

Carolyann Garafola, five-times mayor, seeking re-election

Meanwhile, Carolann Garafola, who said she has lived in Warren Township for 37 "wonderful" years, is seeking re-election as she finishes up her 18th year on the Warren Township Committee.

Warren Township has a mayor appointed by the Township Committee for an annual basis, and Garafola said she has been appointed as mayor five times.

She said she first ran in 1995, when she was not endorsed by the local GOP party; but she did gain the party endorsement the second time around. She added she has not been opposed for her seat the last three times she ran for Township Committee.

Garafola said she also served on the Board of Education, and on the Warren Township Planning Board. 

Garafola said she looks at the needs of all of the residents of Warren Township, younger or older, including the township's 15 percent of senior citizens to the "quiet millionaires" in Warren.

Meanwhile, the Watchung Hills High School Regional has three candidates seeking two seats to represent Warren Township on the board that are being vacated by incumbents Laura Mandell and Harold Grossnickle.

Those incumbents are Robert Morrison, Peter Fallon and Tony Sardis.

The Watchung Hills Regional School Board is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. on Monday in the media center at the high school.