Voters tap Eicher, Kelly for council
BY MICHAEL ACKER
Staff Writer

Voters in Sayreville chose a Democrat and a Republican to fill the vacancies that two Democratic councilmen will leave, come Jan. 1, according to preliminary election results.

Republican Kenneth Kelly, a retired police detective, was the high vote getter with 7,889 nods. Democrat Lisa Eicher, a local schoolteacher, garnered 7,719 votes. They are expected to serve their first three-year terms on the Borough Council.

Democrat Jorge Gonzalez and Republican Ron Green were defeated with 7,461 and 7,682 votes, respectively. All figures include absentee votes, but not provisional ballots.

The Middlesex County Clerk’s Office and Board of Elections did not know the impact the provisional ballots would have in Sayreville, since it is not yet known how many were cast.

If the results remain with Eicher and Kelly victorious, Democrats, who have had a majority on the governing body since 2006, would have an equal number of seats on the dais as their GOP counterparts. But Democrats would face a steeper path towards their goals, since Republican Mayor Kennedy O’Brien can break tie votes, which were common last time the council was split, in 2005.

The municipal budget, the borough attorney’s appointment and the mayor’s removal from the Sayreville Economic RedevelopmentAgency are among the issues that the council’s new makeup may have a significant impact on next year. Republicans distributed flyers criticizing Democrats for excessive spending on legal bills and for refusing to reappoint O’Brien to SERA.

Eicher is fulfilling a family tradition of serving on the council, following in the footsteps of her great-grandfather Charles Buchanan, her grandfather Kenneth W. Buchanan Sr., and her brother Daniel Buchanan.

Green said he will not run for public office again and he is still considering whether he will stay on the Planning Board when the mayor makes his appointments next year. His term with the Environmental Commission ends in late 2010.

Gonzalez did not rule out the possibility of another run.

Kelly and Eicher would succeed Democrats Rory Zach and Dennis Grobelny, who did not seek re-election.