NJ town will vote in 'vitriolic' election on whether to make its government nonpartisan
Voters in the affluent North Jersey township of Millburn will head to the polls Tuesday to vote on changing the town’s form of government for the first time since it was incorporated 169 years ago.
The measure would nullify the terms of local township committee members and the entire body would be re-elected under new rules in November. Most notably, municipal elections would become nonpartisan and candidates would be allowed to run without declaring their party affiliations next to their names on the ballot.
Local Democrats say the move is an attempt by the Republican majority to shun an increasingly toxic and unpopular party label.
“I believe it's a way for the Republican candidates to run in November without identifying their party affiliation, or in future elections, at a time when being associated with this party, the national party, is not very popular,” said Cheryl Desmaris, the chair of the Millburn-Short Hills Democratic Committee.
https://gothamist.com/news/nj-town-will-vote-in-vitriolic-election-on-whether-to-make-its-government-nonpartisan