See Presumptive Winners For Washington Township, West Morris Regional School Board

LONG VALLEY, NJ — There will be new members on the boards of education for both Washington Township Schools and the West Morris Regional High School District, unofficial election results show.

Voters in New Jersey turned out Tuesday night in a major election year, making decisions in local and county races as well as major races for Congress and the White House.

Two of Washington Township's seats on the West Morris Regional High School District Board of Education were up for re-election, and so were three seats on the K-8 Washington Township School District. There were several county races on the ballot, as well.

Only one current member, Robert Waskis Jr., was running for another term on the township school board. He got the most votes among the five candidates, and will be joined by Mike Cattano and Melanie Bratton beginning next year.

Washington Township has four seats on the regional high school district board, two of which were up for election. Robert Vicci, a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army, got the most votes and will end up replacing his running mate Armand Czapkowski on the board.

Czapkowski lost out to John J. Sheppard, another current member, by about 400 votes.

Voters also had a race for township committee to consider, and re-elected both Republican members on the ballot.

Here are the latest tallies from the Morris County Clerk's Office.

100 percent of machine votes reported; mail-in ballots and provisional ballots still being counted.

Board of Education - West Morris Regional High School District, Washington Township Representative (Voters could choose 2)

• Robert Vicci: 5,086
• John J. Sheppard (Incumbent): 4,293
• Armand Czapkowski (Incumbent): 3,875

Board of Education - Washington Township School District (Voters could choose 3)

• Robert A. Waskis Jr. (Incumbent): 4,132
• Mike Cattano: 4,072
• Melanie Bratton: 4,047
• Kevin McGrath: 3,811
• Kelly Weinert: 3,922

All results are unofficial until the county clerk verifies them.

Bratton, who has children in the Washington Township School District, said in a statement that she is thankful to have gotten so much support in the election, and is "honored" to serve the township.

Her campaign focused on improving communication and transparency from the administration; strengthening the relationship between teachers and parents; and working towards giving every child an exceptional education, regardless of which elementary school they attend.

"I look forward to learning from the current board members, and working as a team to strengthen our school district," said Bratton, a member of the Old Farmers Road PTA and also parent liaison to the Washington Township Special Education Parent Advisory Board. "I am so optimistic and excited to get to work! We have an incredible community and I am honored to serve the people of Washington Township."

Waskis, who is the presumptive winner of a second three-year term on the board, said he was "deeply honored" to have earned the community's support. He thanked everyone who supported the campaign and cast their votes for him, and said he is looking forward to working with Bratton and Cattano.

"To my friends and family, thank you for your encouragement and understanding. I would also like to acknowledge my opponents; your willingness to dedicate your time in the service of our schools is to be commended regardless of the election outcome," he said. "Congratulations to Melanie and Mike; I look forward to working with you both along with my existing colleagues on the Board. As I shared throughout the campaign season, we’ve set some exciting wheels in motion with a new math program, numerous referendum projects in various stages of completion and a new STEAM curriculum on the horizon. Thank you once again for the chance to lead the implementation of these and other initiatives that will improve educational outcomes of the students of our community."

Vicci's vision and platform for the West Morris Regional HSD was a "back to basics" approach, focused on the fundamental subjects of reading, writing, and arithmetic. He said that refocusing the curriculum on these core areas will strengthen students' academic performance, and that schools have been "straying" from this focus.

"This is a privilege and an honor to serve as a volunteer with so many other wonderful board members," he said. "I am looking forward to working very closely with this Team on unified goals, in support of our beloved children. I am also excited about learning the process with these professionals."

Overall, Morris County reported a voter turnout of about 69 percent. The most most recent report shows that 81,716 people voted early in-person, 46,482 voted by mail, and 146,314 cast their votes in-person on Tuesday.

Tuesday was a busy Election Day, and more than 4 million New Jersey residents cast their vote for President; final tallies were still being calculated early Wednesday afternoon.

Current Vice President Kamala Harris conceded to President-elect Donald Trump, who has won a second non-consecutive term in the White House, around 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

Harris won New Jersey by 177,150 votes and 4 percentage points according to the most recent results — a much smaller margin against Trump than in 2020, when Biden won the state by 16 percentage points; or in 2016, when Hillary Clinton won by 14 percentage points.

Other election coverage:

• Bashaw Concedes NJ Senate Race To Andy Kim
• 5 NJ Counties Flip Red In Trump Vs. Harris Race: See Breakdown
• Morris Co. Commissioners, Surrogate Election: See Unofficial Results