On Tuesday, Nov. 4, voters across Mercer County will cast ballots not only in New Jersey’s closely watched gubernatorial race, but also for two county-wide offices: the county clerk and the Board of County commissioners. These offices have direct effects on everything from the distribution of mail-in ballots to the maintenance of county roads and parks.
The Office of the County Clerk manages elections at the county level, including the printing of ballots, vote-by-mail applications, drop-box operations, verification of candidate petitions, and certification of results. Voters will choose between the incumbent clerk, Democrat Paula Covello, and Republican small business owner Shaolin Brown at the polls on Tuesday.
Covello has been in office since 2006. “I feel like I’m able to provide services to so many residents in this position,” she said in an interview with The Daily Princetonian. “Serving the community and being able to meet new people. I mean, all of it is very rewarding.”
Over the past two decades, she has navigated five presidential elections, including ensuring that all registered voters were able to receive their mail ballots during Hurricane Sandy and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The governor required us to do an all vote-by-mail primary. We had to mail ballots to over 250,000 registered voters in our county, and we did it! Everyone was able to vote, and that was a very challenging election,” Covello said.
Covello said she wants to fight voting restrictions in her upcoming term. “I’m going to continue to fight and be an advocate for fair and free voting,” Covello told the ‘Prince.’ “I’m going to fight against any kind of limitation to our current voting laws that we have right now.”
Shaolin Brown did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
There are also two seats on the Board of County Commissioners which will be up for election. The Board acts as the county’s legislative body, and the commissioners set the county’s budgets and pass ordinances. The race is between incumbent Democrats Nina Melker and Cathleen Lewis and Republicans Daniel Hanley and Alexander “AJ” DiFalco.
Commissioner Nina Melker, who was first elected to the Board of Commissioners in 2018, said that she felt “hopeful and confident” about winning on Tuesday.
“I feel like I’ve done a good job in my role, [and] I think people have been pleased with the work that I’ve done,” Melker told the ‘Prince’ in an interview. “I am out there in the community, and I am available to my constituents.”
To take over the positions on the Board, Republicans Daniel Hanley and AJ DiFalco, are focused on “broad appeal,” with policies aimed toward preventing property tax increases and making the county more business-friendly, as stated in an interview with the ‘Prince.’
“We’ve seen lots of issues with county mismanagement,” DiFalco said. “Property taxes don’t have to go up every year by 10 or 20 percent, [and] we don’t have to have millions of dollars go missing. We have to have accountability.”
“We have a county commissioner board who will not fulfill the current roles of their government. They will not keep tax rates flat, they will not keep fiscal responsibility under control,” he continued. “They will not provide us, the county, with accountable government and checks and balances. So I say they are not fulfilling their role of government, [and] it’s time for me to step in.”
In response to concerns about tax increases and a lack of business development, Melker stated that during her tenure on the board, taxes have only been raised in the past two years.
“When you talk about us not being a friendly county to businesses, I would disagree with that one hundred percent,” she said. “I deal with businesses in this county every day, [and] we have amazing programs for the business community.”
Melker said that her work as a commissioner was informed by the 45 years she spent working as a banker in Hamilton and serving on a number of nonprofit boards in Mercer County. One of her proudest achievements on the board was being able to “put money back into the community” by overseeing the distribution of American Rescue Program (ARP) funds to both businesses and municipalities following the pandemic.
If re-elected, Melker said that her “number one issue” is supporting constituents who rely on federal benefits following cuts to SNAP. “People should be able to eat and have a home to live in, and all the basics that most of us just take for granted,” she said. “And with these benefit cuts, [people] lose the major things that you need to survive in life.”
When asked about the development of AI hubs, like the one recently constructed in Princeton, Hanley said that he supported them but was concerned that Governor Phil Murphy’s clean energy policies would limit future construction.
“In the last eight years, Governor Murphy shut down eight power generation sources and five coal-fired power [sources]. We used to be a net exporter of energy up until 2017, 2018 and now, we have to get our energy from elsewhere,” he said. “I think it’s wonderful that we want AI data centers ... But you know, where are we going to get the power from?”
When asked about energy provision, Melker said that these issues are mainly decided on the national and state level and do not come in front of the commissioners. However, she also noted that the Board of Commissioners has been working to bring more clean energy technology, like electric vehicle chargers, to Princeton.
A financial planner, Hanley believes that his years of experience in the business world would help the Board of Commissioners implement policies to promote economic growth in a county known for having high taxes.
“You have the highest real estate taxes in the country, and in the state, you have the highest income taxes and the highest business taxes,” Hanley told the ‘Prince.’ “That doesn’t sound like a very friendly tax environment for any business that wants to come into New Jersey.”
DiFalco believes that, as a college student, he offers voters a fresh perspective on county issues despite his lack of political experience.
“My youth really helps our campaign’s message [that] we are the change — we are coming to reform Mercer County,” he said.
When asked what she hoped voters would remember on Election Day, Melker spoke about her experience: “I feel that I have been a dedicated public servant. I do my job, and I take it seriously because I consider it an honor and a privilege to serve my community. I hope that they will keep that in mind and remember that I have spent these years giving everything that I can.”
Lewis did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
The early voting window will last until Nov. 2. Election day will take place Nov. 4. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m.
Leela Hensler is a staff News writer and a staff Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’ She is from Berkeley, Calif. and can be reached at leela[at]princeton.edu.
Ambre Van de Velde is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’ She is from Boston, Mass. and can be reached at av8447[at]princeton.edu.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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