It is shortly after midnight, Oct. 22, my 44th birthday, 16 days before the election and four days before we will endorse candidates for the Township Council race in South Brunswick and five days before we endorse in Cranbury for its Township Committee race. I won’t say who will get the nod, but I want to offer some thoughts on what goes into an endorsement and into the choice more generally of the candidates who will get my own vote on Nov. 7.
Over the years, I’ve heard a lot of people say things like “It’s the person, not the party” or tell me they look at a person’s qualifications (whatever that might mean). On some level, I guess, I agree. I have endorsed candidates from both major parties, as well as independents and members of third parties. Each decision is treated independently, with the particular circumstances and candidates factored in.
For instance, I’ll be voting for Bob Menendez for U.S. Senate — not because I find him a particularly compelling candidate, but because it is important that his party take control of the Senate to end conservative control of the Senate and because he has been opposed to the war since 2003.
I voted Nader in 1996 and 2000 because I was fed up with the major parties and because I felt that a Nader vote in a blue state like New Jersey was a safe bet — unlike Florida, where a vote for Nader was a vote taken from the Democrats in a borderline state that ended up officially going red.
I voted for Bill Baroni last time out because he is a reformer and independent and a voice that is needed in the state Assembly. I also voted for Mike Paquette, another Republican, in what was a difficult decision (I also like Linda Greenstein as a candidate and Assemblywoman).
At the local level, you have to take into account several things:
1. Vision and philosophy. What do the candidates believe and what are their longterm hopes for the community? How do the answers to those questions match the community’s values ad the values of the editorial page that I run?
2. Competence (as opposed to qualifications) and past record. Do the candidates seem to know the community? Do they know the issues? Have they done their homework? What have they done while in office (or on other boards and commissions)?
3. Circumstances. What is the composition of the governing body and are their any dissenting or contrary voices (these do not have to be from other parties, but generally are)? Would a particular outcome shift partisan control and would that affect policy for the good or ill (See Senate race comments above)?
All of this is tossed into the mix and shaken (not stirred) and an endorsement is made. Most times, we are satisfied with the decision, though occasionally we endorse with reservations.
So stay tuned until Thursday and Friday for our decisions.
South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick
Hank Kalet 