Mayor Billy Portman with Governor Phil Murphy at the ceremony. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy helped launch a new era in Red Bank government, swearing in Billy Portman for his first full term as mayor Saturday.
At an open-air ceremony held outside borough hall, Murphy also mildly roasted Councilwoman Kate Triggiano, the local Democratic party chair who helped engineer the change.
Marlboro Mayor John Hornick, in highlighted pane, was among the five municipal officials from two counties interviewed about forms of government by the Red Bank Charter Study Commission Tuesday night.
Vin Gopal and his 11th-district running mates staked out an island of Democratic blue in a sea of GOP red. (Map by NJSpotlight.com.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Middletown resident Phil Murphy was the clear winner in the 2017 New Jersey gubernatorial race Tuesday, in spite of a chilly reception from his home county.
Meanwhile, Republican state Senator Jen Beck of Red Bank lost her 11th-district statehouse seat to Democrat Vin Gopal, and first-term Red Bank Councilman Mike Whelan came up short in his bid for an Assembly seat on Beck’s ticket.
Former Little Silver Councilman Declan O’Scanlon, a Republican, held off a challenge to his 13th-district state Senate seat by Middletown Democrat Sean Byrnes, according to results posted by the Monmouth County Clerk.