No settlement in bitter fire district election
Legitimacy of votes an issue in contest for fire commissioner seat
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

OLD BRIDGE - An offer that would have settled a nearly year-old battle for a fire commissioner's seat has been refused, leaving the matter up to the court.

Eleanor Walker, one of two candidates for the Fire District 2 post, refused the settlement, which would have brought an end to the bitter dispute. As it stands, her opponent, Kevin Kingston, has been declared the winner by two votes, but Walker is challenging the legitimacy of the tally in court.

The settlement offer, made in early December by Kingston's attorney, John Pilles, proposed that Kingston take the seat that was up for grabs in the election, and that Walker fill the seat of Commissioner Robert Weiss, who would vacate his position early. Walker would then have to run again in February, and Kingston would agree to support her candidacy.

"She refused the deal, and is proceeding with her court case," said Linda Seiler, one of Walker's supporters. "She's confident in the case. If he is opposing her so vehemently, why would he be supporting her in February?"

Kingston said the deal was not his idea, but he would have liked to bring an end to the court case for the sake of the voters who have been subpoenaed. His support of Walker in the February election would have been a concession made in the deal, he said.

"My whole contention here is, I'm not going to be the one to inconvenience the voters," Kingston said. "The whole point behind that deal was to stop them in their tracks and not have people have to come to court. I can't believe they're actually doing this to the voters, it's surreal to me."

On Jan. 22, there will be a status conference at which time the judge will most likely set a date for a hearing, according to Walker's attorney, Kevin Main.

"The judge is strongly advising them to settle this thing and get it over with because they're in a no-win situation," Kingston said.

Walker however told the Suburban in an e-mail that the judge has never encouraged settlement.

"Getting to the truth is of utmost importance," Walker wrote.

The battle started back in February, when the original election resulted in a tie after an absentee vote for Walker was counted. A run-off election in June declared Walker victorious by one vote. A recount produced the same numbers. After Kingston brought a complaint before the courts questioning more than a dozen absentee ballots that were not counted, the ballots were opened, and he was declared the winner by two votes.

The entire process has been rife with accusations of foul play, including talk about everything from electioneering and election fraud to personal attacks.

In late November, Walker's attorney had absentee voters subpoenaed to question whether their ballots were truly legitimate. According to Main, there were questions regarding the chain of custody, registration process and whether voters were assisted in filling out their ballots. Depositions were given Nov. 29 in New Brunswick, and about 18 voters were in attendance.

Kingston was highly critical of that action.

"If they can do that and get to sleep at night, have a good conscience and look at themselves in the mirror, God bless them, but I can't do it," Kingston said.

When Kingston's complaint caused more absentee votes to be counted, it was decided that three of the ballots could be counted without proof because the voters had registered in person, Seiler said.

"I think Mrs. Walker believes there is sufficient information to question the outcome of the election," Seiler said.

If there was not a valid case, the judge could have thrown it out, Seiler noted.

"I believe that they are doing this to keep me out of the seat ... the executive board, they just don't want me in there," Kingston said. He said he feels there are no checks and balances on the current board of commissioners, and that they do not want to see an outsider join their ranks because they want to avoid anyone questioning their actions.

Walker disputes that point.

"All fire commission meetings are open to the public," Walker wrote. "Mr. Kingston is free to attend if he has concerns about the board actions."

According to Kingston, Walker's platform has been controlled by others in her camp. He cited an appearance both

candidates made before a group of elderly citizens, when Walker read her speech from a piece of paper, then would not answer questions from those in the audience, according to Kingston.

Walker denied Kingston's assertions.

"I ran for commissioner because I feel that I am qualified for the job and want to serve the community," she wrote.

"This is strictly her decision to go ahead with this [court case]," Seiler said, adding that Walker is extremely informed on the workings of the District 2 fire department.

Seiler raised questions about why Kingston does not volunteer for the department or show up to meetings.

Kingston, who has been a paid firefighter in East Orange for 10 years, said volunteering for another department would be frowned upon by his union, workplace and the city of East Orange. He said he volunteers his time in other capacities in the town, along with working three jobs.

"Their mantra is, why don't I volunteer," Kingston said. "When I volunteer for things, I keep it quiet because, why should I go out and broadcast what I'm doing? I'm not looking for any type of recognition."

The reason he does not attend fire commission meetings, Kingston said, is that he has been advised not to by his attorney, to avoid potential conflict.

"I have the minutes to every single meeting," Kingston said. "Mrs. Walker hasn't been to any of those meetings either."

Walker wrote that, since the original election in February, Kingston has only attended one meeting, while she has attended a number of them.

"A question I would pose to Mr. Kingston is, how can someone who professes to be interested in the position of fire commissioner and has stated that there are no checks and balances within the board of fire commissioners not attend meetings," she said.