After Democrat switches parties, another brings a challenge in Holmdel

HOLMDEL – Two seats on the township committee are up for election this November.

Incumbent DJ Luccarelli is running for his second term with Joseph Romano, president of Sapient Health Management. Holmdel’s five-person committee votes for its own mayor at the start of every year and Luccarelli is Holmdel’s current mayor. He is also the owner of Sweetwaters Coffee and Tea in Newark.

Neither Luccarelli or Romano, who are running on the Republican ticket, responded to a list of questions about their background or priorities if elected to the township committee.

Romano, who had previously run as Democrat for the township committee in 2020, did not respond to questions about his switch to running on the Republican ticket.

In Luccarelli’s opening address as mayor this year, he laid out his priorities, which include building unity and fostering community pride, keeping taxes low, reducing car thefts and supporting the township’s emergency management to guarantee township safety. He also said in January that he was working on preserving the Horn Antenna. The land the Horn Antenna sits on will be turned into a park after a $5.5 million agreement with the developer Crawford Hill Holdings that was announced on Oct. 12.

The sole Democrat

Retired Montclair State University professor Kathleen Bauer is the sole candidate running on the Democratic ticket.

She wrote in an email that she is running for the township committee because of her belief in diversity, openness and transparency.

“It is not healthy for only one party to rule the government,” she wrote.

Bauer touted her 39 years as a professor working in the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, teaching, researching, publishing and directing programs. She said she spent the majority of her time at Montclair serving as deputy chair or chair of her department where she oversaw the education of over 800 students every year as well as supervise other faculty members and supporting staff.

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She said, “I negotiated contracts for the management of food and science labs and developed department policies for a safe and effective education environment.”

She said she has also volunteered as a leader of the Girl Scouts and was a member of the township’s Board of Health.

“I hope to be a voice of reason and work cooperatively with other members of the council,” she said. “I particularly would like to investigate options for improving the safety and security of our community. I am concerned about reports of car thefts in our area.”

Switching tickets

Romano had previously been elected to the Holmdel Democratic County Committee in 2020. That year he ran and lost against Luccarelli and committeeman Greg Buontempo, who is not running for reelection this year. In 2021, while still an elected member of the Holmdel Democratic County Committee, he publicly endorsed Republican Rocco Impreveduto while working on Democrat Rahul Diddi’s campaign, according to Barbara Singer, chair of the Holmdel Democratic County Committee.

Singer, who has been chair since 2020, said she has never heard of someone elected to the Holmdel Democratic County Committee who supported another party candidate when one of its own candidates were running.

She called the move unethical.

Local county committee members of both the Republican and Democratic party are required to get signatures to get on the November ballot. They represent the district they reside in.

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Singer said Holmdel’s Democratic County Committee has 20 members, and in 2020, it passed its bylaws that stipulate that elected officials must support and promote the Democratic candidate on the ballot.

Singer said there’s a difference between a voter affiliated with the Democratic Party endorsing a Republican candidate and an elected member of the local Democratic County Committee endorsing a Republican candidate over its own candidate.

“If you’re running for office saying, I will fulfill the responsibilities of this office,” Singer said. “That’s the oath you’re taking when you put your name on the ballot for people to vote (for) you.”

She said Romano was removed from the Holmdel Democratic County Committee for the ethical violation.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7.

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Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation, Red Bank and western Monmouth County. She can be reached at oliu@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: After Holmdel Democrat switches parties, another brings a challenge