Your Voice, Our Victory. Thank You

Steve Mondragon and I stand completely humbled and honored by yesterday’s shared victory in the Berkeley Heights Primary for Town Council.

This win isn’t a personal accolade but a reflection of a community united behind a different way of governing. To work well, local government must be pragmatic, issue-focused, and open to all perspectives. We must move on from the politics of the past and begin to view our differences as valuable paths to a more accountable approach to decision-making.

Our campaign, rooted in Fiscal Responsibility and Transparency, seeks to address your concerns. The lessons we learned from the broken process surrounding the Municipal Building cannot be forgotten and must be kept in mind as we face the Overdevelopment Issues challenging our community and schools.

We pledge to involve residents as equal partners in our town government, in line with the intent of our original charter. Our goal extends beyond mere transparency: we aspire to maintain close contact with you, representing your interests and acting as your voice on the council.

Steve and I will represent your perspectives as we stride toward serving on the council.

As we face Bill Machado and Margaret Illis in the general election, we look forward to an issue-focused, honorable contest. Recognizing that we come from different party affiliations, let us unite as a town and make choices explicitly based on the candidate’s merit.

I commend our opponent, Jim Skidmore, for running a clean campaign, a testament to democratic values.

The support from my wife, children, campaign manager, and friends has been indispensable.

Thank you to everyone who greeted us warmly and took the time to listen to our goals. Whether we shared the same viewpoint, your words resonated deeply.

Edmund Tom Maciejewski

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