Joe Vicari addresses an OCGOP rally Monday night. (Photo: Vicari Campaign)
The Ocean County Republican organization rallied its troops Monday night, while Democrats in Brick are planning a wide voter mobilization effort in town all day Tuesday. Meanwhile, a third party congressional candidate filed a last-minute election fraud complaint against his GOP opponent, Tom MacArthur.
Ocean County’s Republicans took to their usual election night perch 24 hours early this year, rallying support for longtime Ocean County Freeholder Joe Vicari in his re-election bid. Vicari has fended off vicious allegations by his opponent, Democrat Tim Ryan, who based his campaign on unconfirmed allegations from William Santos, a former Republican and county employee who claimed Vicari and the county government were being investigated by the FBI. But the Ryan campaign never turned up any documents proving such an investigation ever took place, and in a battle of words at a recent meeting, fellow Freeholder Jack Kelly asked Santos if he called the FBI himself and then claimed an investigation took place.
At the rally, which featured U.S. Reps. Frank LoBiondo and Chris Smith and congressional candidate Tom MacArthur, the focus was on the policies of President Barack Obama, PolitickerNJ reported.
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“Tomorrow we’re going to send a message, as you’ve heard many times before, not only to send a message to Ocean County but to the Obama administration,” the website quoted Vicari as saying. “And that is no to his policies, no to his supporters, and no to anything Obama has to do.”
In Brick, township council candidate Andrea Zapcic, a Democrat, hoped to get a boost from Mayor John Ducey and the township’s Democratic organization.
Running under the banner of “The Ducey Team for Brick,” the township’s Democrats announced a well-organized voter mobilization effort planned for Election Day. The party faithful are meeting at Painters Hall on Route 88 where canvassers will be sent out all day long. Volunteers will also work the phones in support of Zapcic from 10 a.m. to 7:59 p.m.
“You know why this election is important so we need you!” the party said on its Facebook page Monday night.
Zapcic’s challenger, Domenick Brando, was said by sources to be leading in some internal polls. But those reports came in before the Democrats sent out a controversial mailer accusing Brando of being a “crooked contractor” in a move that Brando said would result in legal action. Whether the mailer helped or hindered the Zapcic campaign has yet to be seen, and will likely be reflected in Tuesday night’s results.
Read Shorebeat’s profiles and interviews with Brick’s council and Board of Education candidates.
[divider]Finally, speaking of legal action, one candidate filed a last-minute case in Toms River, accusing Republican congressional candidate Tom MacArthur of fraudulently casting a primary election ballot in June. Frederick John LaVergne, running as the Democratic-Republican Party’s candidate, claimed an apartment MacArthur bought in Toms River is not his primary residence and his vote, therefore, is not valid.
MacArthur, a formerly Randolph Township mayor, bought the Toms River apartment earlier this year. He also maintains a home in Barnegat Light.
“I filed the complaint because he is guilty of two crimes, and, if the courts take action, they can prevent a third, tomorrow – but I know that they will not, and I want the VOTERS to see that,” LaVergne said in a social media post on his campaign’s Facebook page Monday night.
Last week, a poll from the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey showed MacArthur leading his Democratic opponent, Aimee Belgard.
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