Field of six vies for freeholder seats The following candidates are running for three seats on the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders on Nov. 6 Stephen J. "Pete" Dalina DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES Stephen J. "Pete" Dalina Age: 77 Residence: Fords, Woodbridge Occupation: Retired bar and restaurant owner Position: Freeholder since 1990; deputy director since 1994; chairman of the Department of Parks and Recreation Listed accomplishments: Increasing the county park system from 4,500 acres to 6,670 acres; dedication of the John A. Phillips Open Space Preserve in Old Bridge; created a waterfront park in Sayreville; establishment of the Roosevelt Care Center in Edison Other political positions: Woodbridge Planning Board member in the 1960s; Woodbridge councilman for 12 years Community involvement: Chief of the Fords Fire Company for 27 years; former president of the fire company; St. Joseph's High School Fathers' Club president for 12 years; president of the Fords baseball league; member and vice president of the Fords Lions Club Campaign issues: Preserving natural resources; keeping Middlesex County green; potential new hospital facility in Old Bridge with 185 beds; keeping traffic moving; limiting saturation of land from housing developments Blanquita B. Valenti Blanquita B. Valenti Age: 73 Residence: New Brunswick Occupation: Retired educator Position: Position: Freeholder for three years; chairman, Department of Human Services; chairman, Department on Aging Community involvement: New Brunswick City Council member since 1990; co-founder of the Puerto Rican Action Board of New Brunswick; member of the Visiting Nurse Association of New Jersey; representative for Middlesex County to the New Jersey Association of Counties; trustee for the New Brunswick Sister Cities Association; trustee of the Saint Peter's University Hospital board for nine years; board of trustees for the Middlesex County College for 13 years; member New Brunswick Planning Board; member Human Relations Commission of New Brunswick Listed accomplishments: Started Housing First program to combat homelessness in the county; counseling senior citizens on Medicare changes; volunteer for Meals on Wheels, which supplies meals to 4,000 senior citizens throughout the county; provided translation services in Spanish, Russian, Polish and Gujarati; constructing a level playing field at the Roosevelt Park in Edison for children with disabilities Christopher D. Rafano Campaign issues: Limiting tax increases; combating homelessness; acquiring funding for children and family services and prevention of juvenile delinquency; gang prevention through middle school programs; working with the Council for Children's Services to help incarcerated juveniles readapt to life after their rehabilitation; working with the Middlesex County Commission for Persons with Disabilities to aid visually impaired, hearing-impaired, wheelchair-bound or mentally ill residents; organizing seminars for abused children; funding the augmentation of law enforcement agencies in order to combat drugs and guns Christopher D. Rafano Age: 46 Residence: South River Occupation: Attorney; former municipal prosecutor; former Planning Board attorney in South Plainfield Geoffrey Champion Political positions: Freeholder since 1998; chairman of the Department of Law and Public Safety since 1998; recently appointed by Gov. Jon Corzine to serve on a commission for teen driving safety; South River councilman 1993-98; council president in South River 1997 Community involvement: South River Little League board of directors; member of the South River Historical and Preservation Society Listed accomplishments: Securing Homeland Security grants; training and equipping first responders; integrating county and municipal law enforcement agencies; improving efficiency at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center, including video visitations and video arraignments; maintaining a state-of-the-art fire academy; increasing educational opportunities with the county vocational and technical schools; implementing the Tech 2000 program, which placed a computer in every county classroom; providing municipalities with grant money for improved recreation and open space Campaign issues: Stabilizing the county tax rate; continuing the county's bond rating through financial stability and good budgeting; continuing the second lowest per-capita cost of county government in New Jersey; continuing the preservation of open space and improvements to recreational facilities; increasing green technology with hybrid vehicles and alternative fuel; constructing a 180-bed extended-care facility in Old Bridge; continuing services and quality of life at an affordable cost to residents Daniel S. Kerwin REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES Geoffrey Champion Age: 48 Residence: South Plainfield Occupation: Over six years in financial management; over 20 years in sales; former functional manager with MetLife in Piscataway; currently a mortgage salesperson with a national banking company Community involvement: Buddy Ball coach in Edison; member of the Parents Organization of the J.P. Stevens High School band in Edison in the late 1990s; campaign volunteer for the South Plainfield Republican Organization; candidate for South Plainfield Borough Council in 2002; candidate for Freeholder in 2006 John A. Rucki Campaign issues: Creating an ethics-driven approach to county government; ending pay-to-playinfluenced no-bid contracts; eliminating dual office holding and dual pension plans; going to a zerobased budgeting process; abolishing acceptance of funds from developers; creating safer roadways; keeping money designated for certain projects within those budgets and not used for miscellaneous projects; updating evacuation routes out of the county in case of a flood or emergency; correcting the mismanagement of taxpayer money; ensuring proper pickup of recyclable items Daniel S. Kerwin Residence: Old Bridge Occupation: Groundskeeper Community involvement: Director of the New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers; The Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh; New Jersey Education Association; past president of the Jamesburg Civic Association; Central Jersey Rail Coalition; former member of the Milltown Revitalization Committee; former member of the South Brunswick Shuttle Bus Task Force Campaign issues: Carrying over surplus for use the following year for the same purposes, instead of reassigning money to unrelated projects; reinforcing passenger rail lines; expanding county bus routes; improving roadways, since the Department of Transportation lists Middlesex County as the second-worst county for automobile accidents, injuries and fatalities, with a combined total of 30,000 in 2006 alone; developing new parking areas or park-and-rides; creating green pathways to reduce vehicular traffic; seeking cooperation from neighboring counties; creating employment opportunities through a better business environment John A. Rucki Residence: Sayreville Occupation: Over 30 years of experience in the private sector management positions of chemical manufacturing, environmental management and remediation, health and safety management and Occupational management Affiliations: Member and past chairman of the Sayreville Zoning Board of Adjustment since 2001; member and president of a Morris County municipality council for eight years; Board of Health chairman in Morris County for two years; member of the Multi-Family Dwelling Advisory Committee in Morris County for two years; former member of the Solid Waste Advisory Council in Morris County Community involvement: Former trustee of the Colony Club Homeowners Association in Sayreville; former trustee and president of the Main Street Homeowners Association in Sayreville; trustee of the New Jersey Citizens for Immigration Control in Carlstadt Campaign issues: Focusing on a zero-based budgeting process; ensuring taxpayer return on investments; evaluating the effectiveness of county programs; restoring ethics to county government; banning dual office holding for elected officials who hold a county job, thereby eliminating double pension plans; improving prevention programs through the Department of Homeland Security, such as enabling county officers to work with federal law enforcement agents to remove criminal illegal aliens from the streets.