Democrats and Republicans … Politics and Politicians … in Atlantic Highlands they were far different in 1981 than they are today, according to daily newspapers from that era.
It was a time when the Democrats were so disgusted with the Republican control of the governing body their two candidates for the two seats to be decided in the November election dropped out of the race in the 11th hour, in effect telling the voters they did not want a bi-partisan form of government and would let the Republicans easily gain control of all seven positions, the six council seats and the mayoral post.
Democrat leader James R. Snyder said the actions of his own party “disgusted him” because of that response to the Democrat party attempt to keep a two-party system of government in the borough.
Republican Everett Curry was Mayor at the time, and the two seats held by Democrats John Kelleher and Herbert Moore were up for three-year terms in November. Both Kelleher and Moore indicated they did not want to seek another term. Robert Waldron, who had originally indicated he would seek election to one of the seats as a Democrat, also dropped out, with all three Democrats citing their own job commitments.
As a result of the Democrat action, when voters went to the polls in November 1981, Republicans Robert Abrams and Edgar Braun were on the ballot, along with independent Margaret Benson, a member of the Henry Hudson Regional Board of Education, with no Democrat hopefuls for the two council seats.
Snyder said, “this is a Republican town, there’s no kidding about it,” annoyed he could not find Democrat candidates to run for the two vacant seats. “They’ve been running the town for 75 of the last 80 years,” Snyder continued, “let them start cleaning up the place.”
So the Republicans did, winning easily over Mrs. Benson, polling 966 and 937 votes over her 401, with 58% of the registered voters casting ballots.
After the election Republican Jane Frotton was named to the vacancy created by Les Merker, who had resigned his seat too late to be included on the ballot, creating an all-Republican borough council.
The main issue facing voters at the time appeared to be “cleaning up First Avenue” and getting new businesses to open on the borough’s main street.
More Local History HERE
