Over the past few weeks, Asbury Park youth met and created questions for candidates running for municipal office. All eleven candidates were invited to participate in interviews in the outdoor seating at Booskerdoo Coffee & Baking Co.

Eight candidates made themselves available. Here are those interviews.

Board of Education Candidate Questions

  1. Why are you running for the Board of Education?
  2. Do you agree with school uniforms? Do you understand how difficult it was for the students and parents to make the transition to school uniforms and the problems that have arisen because of it? Give us your opinion and let us know if you agree with the policy. If you are elected, will continue to support it, and why or why not?
  3. What do propose to do to encourage the administration to listen to teachers and students?
  4. How come we aren’t offered many extra- curricular activities? What will you do to improve that if you are elected?
  5. Why do some people that live in Asbury Park pay their fair share of taxes for the school system, but others don’t? What will you do to address the situation to make it fairer?
  6. What will you do to encourage renovations at the AP school system? Are you aware of the needs for facilities upgrades? What’s your plan to get it done?

Council Questions

  1. What good things did you do before you thought about becoming a Council member?
  2. What impact will you make when you become a Council member?
  3. Why do some people that live in Asbury Park pay their fair share of taxes to the school system, but others don’t? What will you do to address the situation to make it fairer?
  4. What are you going to do about activities for kids?
  5. What are you going to do about stores opening up in town that most people that live here can’t afford to shop in?
  6. What are you going to do about crime?

Mayor Questions

  1. What good things did you do before you thought about becoming Mayor?
  2. What impact will you make when you become Mayor/Mayor again?
  3. Why do some people that live in Asbury Park pay their fair share of taxes to the school system, but others don’t? What will you do to address the situation to make it fairer?
  4. What are you going to foster activities for kids?
  5. There are stores opening up in town that most people that live here can’t afford to shop in. What are your ideas to attract stores that are geared toward Asbury families?
  6. What are you going to do about crime?

Check Asbury Park Reporter for additional election coverage in the coming days.

Board of Ed. Candidates

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Board of Education Candidate Victor Carre interviewed by Jayanna Lunsford
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Board of Education Candidate Dominic Latorraca interviewed by Ceahni Piper
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Board of Education Candidate Barbara Lesinski interviewed by Ceahni Piper
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Board of Education Candidate Remond Palmer interviewed by Angela Johnson
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Board of Education Candidate Tracy Rogers interviewed by Jayanna Lunsford

City Council Candidate

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City Council Candidate Angela Ahbez-Anderson interviewed by Phikai Bellamy

Mayor Candidates

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Mayoral Candidate Sonja Mack interviewed by Angela Johnson
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Mayoral Candidate Felicia Simmons interviewed by Jayanna Lunsford

When can I vote?

Early voting is already underway.


Election Day is Tuesday, November 8 and polls are open from 6AM to 8PM.

Where to vote?

Find your polling place using this official tool from the NJ Division of Elections:

https://voter.svrs.nj.gov/polling-place-search

What if I need more information?

You can get information on races and candidates via Vote411, a service provided by League of Women Voters:

https://onyourballot.vote411.org/build.do

A diverse group of established and seasoned journalists, writers, filmmakers and notable Asbury Park advocates and civic leaders have come together to form the Asbury Park Media Collective (APMC). The organization is new but the long-standing working relationships among the members, coupled with an impressive collective track record in civic media in Asbury Park and beyond provides a solid foundation for this new initiative.

Kerry Margaret Butch is a founding member of the Asbury Park Reporter. Throughout her career, she worked to increase grassroots input in local public policy. She served as the Executive Director of both the Asbury Park Consortium and the League of Women Voters of New Jersey. Notably, she produced the documentaries entitled, “Greetings from Asbury Park,” shown throughout the country and on PBS, and “Storming for the Vote: Hurricane Sandy and the Election.”