S.B. spending plan approved by voters
Battle for third board seat settled
by absentee votes

BY CHARLES W. KIM

Staff Writer

As the votes were tallied in the South Brunswick school election Tuesday night, nine votes separated an incumbent and a challenger.

Newcomer Michael Mahan led Board of Education member Paul Prodromo for the final seat by a vote of 956-947 with only 22 more votes yet to be counted.

"It is worth it," Prodromo said after reviewing the numbers in front of the municipal building Tuesday night. "It was a good civics lesson for my kids. Every vote does count."

Incumbents Anna Tupe and Harry Delgado won re-election with 1,458 and 1,171 votes, respectively.

According to results from the township clerk, the $109 million budget passed voter muster 1,480-1,045, not counting 18 absentee ballots and four provisional ballots.

The budget increased spending by $5 million compared to last year and will increase taxes by 15 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. The increase will amount to about $288 for the owner of a home assessed at $200,000, according to the district.

Board member Barry Nathanson said he was pleased that the budget passed, but was surprised at the margin of victory.

"It was closer than we thought," he said.

While the budget passed fairly easily, a battle ensued for the final open board seat between Mahan and Prodromo.

According to the Middlesex County Clerk’s Office Wednesday, Mahan increased his lead to 15 votes after the absentees were counted. With the absentee votes included, Mahan received 964 votes to Prodromo’s 949.

Another newcomer, Devlin Ponte, finished fourth with 919 votes followed by Arthur Robinson with 541, Elizabeth Szenasi with 364 and Ed Birch with 263 votes.

According to the clerk’s office, 12.8 percent or 2,601 of the township’s 20,376 registered voters turned out to cast their ballots Tuesday.

Prodromo was seeking a second three-year term on the board.

Neither Prodromo nor Delgado was endorsed by the South Brunswick Education Association. Both incumbents opposed placing assistant principals in the elemen­tary schools two years ago.

During a candidate’s debate prior to the election, Prodromo said he now believes the positions are needed, but that it was a waste of money two years ago.

"I still believe we wasted $700,000," Prodromo said during the debate.

The teachers union backed Ma­han and Ponte instead of the two incumbents. The two newcomers were also backed by two former schools superintendents James Kimple and Sam Stewart. The union did, however, back Tupe in her bid for re-election.

Prodromo and Delgado cam­paigned throughout the township during the past week, placing fliers on cars in local supermarket park­ing lots.

"That was us," Prodromo said.