Former School Board Member Seeks 2 Seats In Gloucester Township

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Nine candidates will pursue three open seats on the Gloucester Township K-8 Public School District Board of Education, and five candidates will pursue three open seats on the Black Horse Pike Regional School District’s Board of Education in November.

One candidate is running in both elections.

Linda Gilch filed two petitions by Monday’s 4 p.m. deadline to run for school boards in Gloucester Township, according to the Camden County Clerk’s Office.

Gilch, who served as a member of the K-8 Board of Education from 2002-2018, is running under the slogan, “Experienced, Integrity, Independent” for both local districts that serve Gloucester Township students.

State law prohibits candidates from accepting more than one nomination of a nomination in a petition for a primary election. That deals with state and county government office. School board elections are non-partisan, although that line is being blurred in this year’s elections. Read more here: County GOP Backing 'Nonpartisan' School Board Candidates

State law also states that "a person elected to public office in this State shall not hold simultaneously any other elective public office."

According to the New Jersey School Board Association, one legal requirement covers school boards is that no candidate can simultaneously hold two elective offices, but it doesn’t say anything about running for two offices simultaneously.

Gilch told Patch that if she is lucky enough to win in both elections, she would then have to choose which board she would join. She feels she is qualified to serve on both boards because of her prior experience.

In the K-8 district, incumbents Anthony Marks and Brian Hammel are joined by Kia Lipscomb on the “Building Brighter Futures” ticket.

Keith Gibbons and Jennifer Zuck are both running under the slogan, “Principled Resolutions.”
Pauline Algeria is running under the slogan, “Ethical, Dedicated, Accessible,” and Tanika Harvey is running under the slogan, “Empowering Future Leaders.”

“Building Brighter Futures” is also the name of the slate for the incumbents in the Black Horse Pike Regional School District, which includes Highland, Timber Creek and Triton regional high schools.

That slate includes Board Vice President Jay McMullin and Board Members Matthew Jefferson and Jennifer Storer.

Shana Mosley filed to run under the slogan, “Prioritize Our Children.”