BY DEENA YELLIN - STAFF WRITER / THE RECORD
To hear many voters tell it, Tuesday’s elections were about political tone — and they preferred that it be lowered, and a lot more civil.
This quiet town of nearly 4,800 elected two Republican newcomers and rejected former Democratic Mayor James Carroll and former Councilman William Connelly for two Borough Council terms.
Darcy Verbeyst, a longtime resident, said she celebrated when she heard of the victories by the GOP’s Steven Schleim and Theodore Davis, giving Republicans control of the council. The seats were those of two first-term council members — Steve Conti and Marianne Bolduc — opting not to seek reelection.
Davis and Schliem received 622 and 568 votes, respectively, and Carroll and Connelly trailed with 475 and 542.
The winning pair will join Mayor Ray Cywinski, who is a Republican, as are Councilman Joseph Gray, and Councilwoman Mary Montagne.
Many voters surveyed agreed that the election reflected support for the Republican mayor, who faced extreme opposition from council Democrats. In sentiments repeated by others, Verbeyst said Schleim and Davis will likely listen to the concerns of the people — “They are new, fresh faces, and they have this community in mind,” she said.
Carole Cardinale, a former councilwoman, declared: “This election was a referendum against Jimmy Carroll. He’s not a man who encourages ideas from others. Ray Cywinski is in tune with all the people.”
Listening to residents
She accused Carroll of attending council meetings so that he could heckle the Republicans and have the council Democrats attack the mayor at his bidding, and the Democratic candidates of sending out a negative brochure toward the end of the campaign, when nothing could be done to respond to it.
“The people decided that they had had enough of this,” she said. “They [the winning candidates] are sincere and interested in helping the town — that’s their primary motive,” said Cardinale.
Carroll shrugged off the loss, saying, “I think the voters just wanted change for the sake of having a change.”
And he denied that there was any negative campaign and vowed to stay involved with the town.
“I am proud of my record,” he said, about his 14-year stint in politics, including service as a councilman, mayor and freeholder.
Connolly said his wife had warned him not to run again for council and that “I probably should have listened to my wife.”
Resident Alex Parlamis said he has rarely voted Republican but did so in this case — “They seem like they will be an asset for this town because they are decent, and will do what’s right for this town.”
Davis and Schleim had campaigned on a platform of accessibility and fiscal responsibility.
“One of the big differences between us and our predecessors will be the tone of the meetings,” said Schleim. “At some of the meetings, they were not respectful to residents. I want our town to be more accountable for the decisions that get made, and more open to hearing from residents and taking residents’ ideas into consideration.”
Schleim added that he and Davis also hope to delve into municipal finances in order to better manage taxes.
Schleim said that when he met with residents during the campaign, he found that they were fed up with the behavior of the current council — “The attacks and literature by our opponents attacked our mayor. We’re a small town. We can’t afford to treat people like that.”
Schleim vowed to maintain civility.
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