By Peter Elacqua
Staff Writer
HOWELL – Democrat Dr. Theresa Berger has been elected to her first four-year term as Howell’s mayor and Republican Evelyn O’Donnell appears to have been elected to her first four-year term on the Howell Township Council.
Berger is the president and chief executive officer of Ocean Health Initiatives, Inc., Lakewood.
Howell’s mayor is directly elected by voters and generally serves as the public face of the municipal government, although the position is one seat on the five-member council.
Berger will take office in January and Republicans will hold a 4-1 majority if the council vote holds in O’Donnell’s favor after provisional ballots have been counted.
There is no municipal election scheduled for 2017 in Howell.
Republican Mayor Bill Gotto and Republican Councilman Ed Guz did not run for re-election.
Berger was not her party’s nominee for mayor at the time the primary election was held in June. John McCabe was nominated to be the Democrats’ candidate, but he withdrew and was replaced on the ballot by Berger.
In the Nov. 8 race for mayor, Berger received 12,111 votes to defeat Republican Daniel Cardellichio, who received 11,296 votes, (the total includes mail-in ballots), according to results posted online by the Monmouth County Clerk’s Office.
The election results are unofficial until the county certifies them.
“I was shocked, I have never run for office before and it was exciting,” Berger said. “I still don’t believe it. It’s surreal to see my name and see that I won. The people in town needed a change and hopefully I am that breath of fresh air they are looking for.“
“We just want to keep Howell the way it is in terms of open space, and keep any building that occurs in the town positive building (with) growth that brings in more tax dollars to the town.
“There has to be a way that taxes remain stable and not increase by high percentages. Like any new position, there is a lot for me to learn and a lot of new people to meet and I am looking forward to it,” Berger said.
The results in the race for mayor did not mirror the way Howell residents voted for president, as Republican Donald Trump received 15,808 votes and Democrat Hillary Clinton received 9,430 votes.
Berger received about 2,600 more votes than Clinton, and Cardellichio received about 4,500 fewer votes than Trump.
In the race for the four-year term on the council, O’Donnell, who currently serves on the Howell Zoning Board of Adjustment, appears to have defeated Democrat Joseph Montella.
According to results posted by the county clerk, including mail-in ballots, O’Donnell received 11,881 votes and Montella received 11,626 votes; a 255-vote difference).
On Nov. 14, Berger said there were about 400 provisional votes that had yet to be counted. It was not known at that time when the provisional votes in the council race would be counted and the results certified.
A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when a question about the individual’s eligibility arises at his or her polling place.
