Republican incumbents coasted to re-election Tuesday night, preserving the GOP's control of the freeholder board and sheriff's office.
Voters re-elected longtime GOP freeholders Gerry Little and John C. Bartlett Jr. and Sheriff William L. Polhemus by wide margins, with 99 percent of votes reported at 11:30 p.m.
Unofficially, Little and Bartlett captured 111,630 votes and 117,495 votes, respectively, far exceeding the totals recorded for Democratic candidates Joseph Grisanti (74,261) and Pat Barndt (71,738). Independent challengers Scott Newman and Tracy Caprioni each struggled to capture 1 percent of votes cast, with 3,510 and 3,828 votes, respectively.
Polhemus will enter his 28th year in office in 2013 after garnering nearly 56 percent of the vote for sheriff with 110,450 votes. Democratic challenger George "Bob" Armstrong garnered 82,031 votes cast, and Independent John McMenamin received less than 3 percent, with 5,140 votes.
With Little and Bartlett’s re-election, the five-member freeholder board remains stable for the 10th straight year.
Little will be entering his 10th year on the Ocean freeholder board after long experience in government, including a council stint in Surf City and tenure on the Long Beach Township Board of Commissioners. He served as director of the board in 2006 and deputy in 2011 and 2009.
Little also served as chief of staff for the 9th Legislative District from 1984 until his retirement in 2003. Little, a former Marine, also served on the Ocean County Planning Board and county Natural Lands Trust Fund Advisory Council. As a freeholder, Little has chaired Human Services and worked as the liaison to departments including Veterans Services, Social Services and more.
Bartlett, the chairman of the Departments of Finance and Parks and Recreation, is a former Pine Beach mayor and councilman as well as an ex-teacher at Toms River High School North. He served as director of the freeholder board five times previously and was deputy director twice.
He will enter his 34th year in office.
Provisional ballots are still outstanding and must be counted before the Ocean County Clerk's Office certifies the results.
1) GILMORE (Ritacco was just an underling) 2) GET A CLUE (neither of them have one. Norcross wouldn't waste his time.) or 3) independant I went independant.
Long night ahead....hope I had your support - sounds like, at least, my Freeholders did.
Will be working on 2014 starting TOMORROW
Votes Processed - Polling Place/Percent : 411/411 100.00% Vote Count Percent REP - William L. Polhemus 121,177 55.92% DEM - George 'Bob' Armstrong 89,425 41.27% - John McMenamin 5,952 2.75% Write-In 141 0.07% Total 216,695 100.00% A DEAD MAN ELECTED
"I Senator/Representative, pledge to the taxpayers of my district and my state and to the American people that I will: ONE, oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal tax rate for individuals and business; and TWO, oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates." So without increasing the amount of money the government takes in and without increasing taxes on the top 1 or 2%, how do you propose to get the deficit down and how do you propose to eliminate the excess spending on the military that the Republicans started under Bush with their two wars, and which the Republicans are loath to end because the supply chain from the companies that produce the weapons, aircraft, ships, and equipment will all lose business if the size of the military and the money spent on the military is reduced.
"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift. You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred. You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence. You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves." Let's not try to re-write history Bob H.
Thank God OCEAN COUNTY voters have brains. G O P!!!!!