Mendham Republicans Challenge Absentee Ballots In Committee Race

MENDHAM, NJ — The Mendham Township committee election, in which a Democrat was declared the winner by two votes, may be subject to a legal investigation, according to the chairwoman of the Morris County Republican Party.

Candidate Lauren Spirig's initial victory was initially challenged by fellow candidate, Republican Deputy Mayor Tom Baio, who lost the election to Spirig by the narrow margin of two votes.

The vote recount, which occurred this month, reaffirmed the initial decision and named Spirig the official winner once again.

However, the Morris County Republican Committee are claiming that several young Democrats who voted by mail failed to meet state residency requirements.

According to a statement made by Morris County Republican Committee Chair Laura Ali, this includes the daughter of Morris County Democratic Chair Amalia Duarte, who resides in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Duarte is also a member of the Township Committee and serves as the Morris County Democratic Committee Chair.

"Upon discovering this information, Deputy Mayor Tom Baio reached out to Ms. Duarte and asked if she would partner with him on efforts in election reform on the state level. She refused," Ali said. "It is deeply concerning that my Democrat counterpart was more concerned about electing a political ally than protecting the integrity of our elections and honoring the collective voice of her community. The results of any election must instill confidence among our residents and accurately reflect the legal votes cast."

According to the final results certified by the Morris County Clerk, the official vote tally was:

• Spirig: 1,473
• Baio: 1,471
• Moreen: 1,532
• Slayne: 1,397

Duarte issued a statement in response to the situation, expressing her disappointment that the losing Republican candidate, Baio, who previously said he would abide by the results of a recount, is now causing division in Mendham Township and attacking young people's voting rights.

"Unfortunately, instead of addressing the community’s challenges and moving forward, we now have to deal with an unprecedented attack on young voters launched by Tom Baio, with the full support of the Morris County Republican Committee," Duarte said.

In a statement announcing the committee's intention to file a lawsuit challenging the election, Ali stated that there is at least one provisional ballot filed by a Republican voter that was questionably rejected; and due to the recount rules, there was no opportunity to reconsider that vote.

"Without integrity in our elections, we face turning our country into a banana republic and the Morris County Republican Organization will not let that happen,” Ali said.

Duarte pushed back against Ali, saying," We've never had a recount in a Mendham Township election, let alone this type of divisiveness. Local and County Republican operatives are trying to pit neighbor against neighbor."

Duarte further expressed her displeasure at the Republican Committee's attempt at voter suppression, claiming that young voters are a product of their community and consider Mendham to be their hometown, regardless of where they currently reside.

"They played in local leagues. They marched in the July 4th Parade. They are graduates of the local public or private schools. This Republican strategy is shameful and sends a clear message to young voters across Mendham Township that the Republican Party does not value your participation," Duarte said.

This year, election day was filled with several issues throughout Morris County. Municipalities throughout the county, including Mendham, experienced significant delays on Election Day as a result of new machines that were deployed to local precincts.

In Mendham, an official recount of the votes for the Borough Board of Education race was also requested, according to a legal petition from candidate Margery St. John and her attorney, Debra Tedesco.

According to the non-partisan organization Vote411, absentee voting or vote-by-mail ballots are available in New Jersey and no excuse is required. The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is seven days before the election.