Roselle Democrats have chosen Cynthia Johnson as their candidate for an at-large borough council seat, defeating incumbent Denise Wilkerson by a vote of 20-7 in a court-ordered special meeting this evening.
Johnson, a 3rd Ward councilwoman, came within two votes of defeating. Wilkerson in the June Democratic primary. But Superior Court Judge John Deitch annulled the primary results last week after a three-month legal battle that left both sides critical of the court’s sluggish movement.
With no Republican nominee, Johnson is now unopposed in the general election unless someone mounts a successful write-in campaign.
Wilkerson sought to file an appeal of Deitch’s ruling on Friday afternoon, but the judiciary has not responded to her emails or voicemails.
Deitch issued his order after business hours on Friday, and by then, the Appellate Division was closed. Deitch had distributed his decision to some parties, but not all, prior to the 4:30 court closing. The New Jersey Globe first reported Deitch’s ruling at 3:25 PM, and he had publicly announced it before the court closed.
“Within minutes of receiving this decision, (Councilwoman Denise) Wilkerson sought a stay from the trial, which was denied, and filed an application for an emergent appeal and a renewed motion to stay,” said Maximillan J. Ranzato, her attorney, in court documents filed today.
According to court documents, Wilkerson tried to contact the Appellate Division by phone and email, and reached out to the New Jersey State Police to contact a judge on call, but has received no response.
Deitch denied Wilkerson’s request that his ruling be stayed pending an appeal, even though his written decision had not been filed. In New Jersey, attorney court filings are time-stamped, but decisions and orders from judges carry just the date and not the time.
Deitch has been dealing with the Roselle matter since June, when Wilkerson defeated Johnson in the Democratic primary by three votes. He initially denied Johnson’s recount application, but the appellate division overturned him. A recount reduced Wilkerson’s margin to two votes.
Last week, Deitch ordered a do-over primary election after finding at least three voters were inadvertently disenfranchised by poll workers. But on Friday, Deitch changed his mind after discovering that he had no legal basis to order a new election. He ordered the local Democratic Party to select a new nominee; in that venue, Johnson is considered the favorite.
One ballot was cast for “I vote for the people.”
