West Windsor Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh scored a historic landslide victory in his bid for re-election in the May 10 municipal election.##M:[more]## Hsueh and his victorious running mates, council candidates Linda Geevers and Heidi Kleinman, captured almost 90 percent of the vote, a feat unrivaled in the modern history of West Windsor elections.
The three were running on a slate called the Community Vision Team against the Opennes, Integrity, Action slate headed by Councilwoman Alison Miller for mayor and George Borek, and David Siegel for council. Up for election were the mayor’s job, a four-year term, and two four-year seats on township council.
Hsueh defeated Miller by more than 3,”000 votes. According to unofficial results released by the West Windsor Township Clerk’s Office, Hsueh received 3,”566 votes, while Miller only garnered 514.
Hsueh’s running mates scored wins that were almost as impressive. Geevers was the top vote-getter with 3,”400 votes, followed by Kleinman with 3,”331. They were followed by Siegel with 651 votes, and Borek with 588.
There were a handful of votes for write-in mayoral candidates: two for former Mayor Carole Carson, and one each for former Mayor Thomas Frascella, Wendy Rotella, and Kristen McCormick.
Two write-in votes went to Miller for council. Receiving one write-in vote were Uma Desimine, Richard Desimine, Christie Jensen, Joe Jensen, Helaine Taub, Marten, and Jack Oliver.
Hsueh, Geevers, and Kleinman will be sworn into office at the township’s annual reorganization meeting on July 1. Geevers and Kleinman will join Kristin Appelget, Franc Gambatese, and Charlie Morgan on council. In another historical first for the township, all three existing council members endorsed the Community Vision Team.
“I really want to thank, and I appreciate, the support I received from the people in the community,” said Hsueh in an interview following the election. “The result of the vote gives me more encouragement to move forward on all of the projects and issues that I have started.”
“It also gives me the incentive to work harder, and with support from council, I think I will work faster,” Hsueh said, pointing out that at certain times during his first term certain members of council put up stumbling blocks that made it difficult for him to pursue his goals. “At the same time I will never ignore those who are not necessarily on the same page as me.”
Geevers agreed “We’re looking at the dawn of a new time in West Windsor where the mayor and council will work together to bring about positive change.”
She said she expects the mayor and council to meet together in a retreat, similar to the annual goal-setting meeting held by the WW-P Board of Education. Before running for council, Geevers served for six years as a school board member.
“At the retreat we can talk about the coming year and set priorities,” she said. “It’s a wonderful way of renewing relationships, and getting to know each other better, especially when there are new people on council. It gives them a chance to work in a more relaxed setting.”
Geevers said the election results are a mandate. “Residents recognized our qualifications, community experience, and our forward-think vision for making West Windsor a better place to live. We’ve done a lot and put in the hours and they certainly recognized that.”
“There will be a lot of positive changes over the next four years,” she added. “People around town are very excited about the possibility of creating a transit village on the west side of the train station. A lot of residents are looking forward to having our own sense of place.”
Kleinman said she is optimistic about the next four years. “Voters all over the township not only want the council and mayor to address the difficult issues of taxes and public safety, but they want us to take a comprehensive next step in planning for a pedestrian friendly village center.”
“Voters are asking for the mayor and council to lead the discussion with the community about the possibilities mixed use developments can offer to the diversity and identity of our township,” she said.
In its win, the Community Vision Team won every one of the township’s 15 voting districts, and also absentee ballots, 69-10.
Voter turnout was moderate for a township election, with 4,”033 of the township’s 14,”020 registered voters (29 percent) casting their ballots.
The showing is higher than the last municipal election in 2003, when only 8 percent of the township’s registered voters went to the polls for an uncontested race for three seats on council. But it was lower than the last mayoral race in 2001, a 37 percent turnout, when Hsueh won election to his first term.
In contrast, turnout on Tuesday was far lower than in last November’s general election, in which 10,”429 of the township’s 14,”558 registered voters (71.6 percent) cast ballots. In last April’s school election, some 1,”800 voted, a 13 percent turnout.
Fundraising and spending during the campaign was reflective of the number of votes each team received.
According to reports filed with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission 11 days before the election, Hsueh alone had a war chest of almost $50,”000 to draw upon during the campaign.
That figure includes some $28,”000 in contributions and $21,”814 transferred from Hsueh’s prior campaign. Hsueh’s expenditures totalled $17,”957.
A joint statement filed by the Community Vision Team reports $21,”420 in donations and $10,”005 in disbursements.
Community Vision’s extravagant financials are a stark contrast to the meager numbers reported by Miller, Borek, and Siegel — each of whom submitted separate reports. As of 11 days before the election, Miller reported $7,”700 in receipts, Borek had $3,”300, and Siegel had $2,”612. Disbursements were $2,”365 for Miller, $3,”265 for Borek, and $2,”366 for Siegel.
The Community Vision team held its post-election party at the office of Alter Asset Management on Alexander Road, owned by Howard Alter — a township resident and long-time Hsueh supporter. The company is also the place of employment of Hsueh’s son, Steve, a High School South valedictorian and graduate of Princeton University.
In addition to numerous supporters and campaign workers, officials at the celebration included Gambatese, Appelget, Assemblyman Bill Baroni (R-14th District), WW-P School Board President Hemant Marathe, and Township Attorney Michael Herbert.
The mood of the bash turned jubilant after the polls closed at 8 p.m. as individual district results came in indicating that Community Vision had won an overwhelming victory.
By 8:20 p.m., when the numbers from 10 of the 15 voting districts had been reported, it was clear that Community Vision was not only going to win, but that the victory would be one of historic proportions.
“This just shows that good men can be politically successful,” said one woman of Hsueh, before adding: “Well, at least at this level.”
“I think history has been made,” said Lionel Frank, a township activist and member of the planning board in the 1980s. “My wife and I have lived in this town for a long time, and we’ve never seen anything like this.”
Council President Gambatese, who worked on Hsueh’s campaign and sits on council with Miller, was especially pleased by the result, pointing out that Miller wound up receiving even less votes than her running mates.
He said that although the campaign was optimistic Community Vision would win, there were reservations. “My worry was that people were going to be so sure that Shing would win that they wouldn’t come out to vote.”
Many of those present at the party believe that the sizeable victory was a mandate for Hsueh and his policies.
In fact, Hsueh’s win was the first time since the mayor-council form of government was instituted in West Windsor that an incumbent mayor has won re-election.
Also, in the three previous mayoral elections, no one had ever won by such a wide margin. And according to township political pundits, no candidates in their memories had ever won such a resounding victory in any West Windsor election.
In the first mayoral election in 1993, three candidates ran for the office, with Thomas Frascella winning with less than 50 percent of the vote. In the 1997 election, Frascella was narrowly defeated by Carole Carson.
In 2001, Hsueh scored a huge 2,”829 to 1,”785-vote victory over Carson, but that margin is slim compared to the 88 percent Hsueh received this week.
Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardner, the Community Vision campaign manager, said his team’s victory is important one for several reasons. “It sent a very clear message that people have confidence in Shing and his record of accomplishment. It resulted in a very striking endorsement of his policies and what direction the township should be taking.”
Gardner added that the resounding victory shows officials outside the township that Hsueh is a force to be reckoned with. “The nature of the landslide and the percentage of votes he received is going to bode very well for the township. Public officials outside of West Windsor are going to recognize that Shing carries a great deal of strength and support among his constituency in the township. Through this exercise in political muscle he will be able to get a great deal of benefit for the township from these elected officials.”
Hsueh arrived at the party about an hour after the polls closed, and was the subject of resounding applause. He delivered a speech to the throng through a megaphone in an effort to overcome the noise of the growing crowd in Alter’s office.
The mayor thanked his supporters for their hard work in the camping, signalling out Gardner, whom he called his campaign’s CEO, and Steve Decter, his COO. He also thanked his long-time campaign treasurer, Huei Lee.
Hsueh also praised Gambatese, whom he convinced to run for election to council in 2003. “Without Franc Gambatese I would never have been able to accomplish so much as your mayor for the past four years.”
The mayor also pointed out that throughout the campaign, he never assumed that he was going to win the election. “This weekend I was out (campaigning), and people asked me why I was still out knocking on doors. I told them that I was thinking of myself as the underdog. I always run for election like I am the underdog.”
Election night for Alison Miller and her team was more like a quiet night at home. Reached at her Windsor Drive home at around 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Miller asked a reporter to return later, after she had received the voting results.
The reporter went to West Windsor Town Hall, collected the results from several districts that reported while he was there, and then returned to Miller’s home. By then running mate George Borek was there, but neither candidate had yet received any results.
The reporter passed along the results he had observed, which were heavily for Hsueh, and politely suggested that the race appeared to be over. Shortly after that David Siegel arrived with the complete tally of votes. He was considerably less restrained in his evaluation: “It’s an utter and total disaster,” he said. No one argued.
“I did worse than Carole,” said Miller, as she studied the results, comparing them to Hsueh’s first run for mayor against incumbent Carole Carson.
While the Openness, Integrity, Action team seemed surprised by the margin, they were obviously bracing for a defeat. “Shing has a constituency that votes just for him and he has had it since he ran for council,” said Miller. “Plus he has people who will vote for him as mayor.” And, she noted, West Windsor has had a history of electing women over men in Council races. She recited from memory the races of 1993, ‘95, ‘97, ‘99, and 2001. “We can’t count 2003 because we didn’t have a contested election,” Miller said, “but this year we had — sorry, guys — two women against two men.”
Neither Siegel nor Borek, both newcomers to the political scene, seemed discouraged by the outcome. “I think we at least influenced the debate,” said Siegel. “I’ll stay active in the things I was active in before and I’ll keep my options open.”
Said Borek: “West Windsor is my town — I’m here to stay. The hardest thing to do is to get your feet wet. But once you do that people know you better. I will stay active — in 730 days we’ll have another election.”
Miller took consolation in the fact that 2005, unlike 2003, was not an uncontested election. “No one else was going to run, and I thought it was important for the town to have a contested election,” she said.
“I feel I’ve done my job for West Windsor. I wanted to serve on the planning board and to change the patterns of development for the town and it’s happened. We aren’t trying to be a bedroom community anymore and to develop every inch of open space. I wanted us to be COAH-certified,” she continued, referring to the state Council on Affordable Housing guidelines. “We’re not certified yet, but if Shing and his crew follow through and write it up our plan will get certified.
“What’s my legacy? Walk through Windsor Ponds and you will see that the affordable housing is almost indistinguishable from the market rate housing, and it’s not all stuck in one corner of the development.
“I have served well. I like policy, but I don’t really like politics. It’s time for me to move on.”
Miller took a phone call from Rae Roeder, township activist and former councilwoman, who had supported her candidacy, and then placed a congratulatory call to Hsueh at his celebration party. At that point the reporter asked if he could be permitted “one crazy question:” Would either Miller, Siegel, or Borek be willing to take a ride with him to the Hsueh headquarters and congratulate the winners in person?
Not a chance. That would be more politics than policy, and on this evening they all seemed to have had their fill of politics.
