Ever since Freeholder Jerry Thornton launched his attack against colleague Marie Hayes, having her become perhaps the only Cape May County freeholder in history to be sanctioned, he’s been facing an unexpected surge of condemnation.
Fellow Republicans are distraught with their freeholder director, publicly sanctioning another Republican freeholder, especially his own running mate in a re-election campaign. Thornton is perhaps making history as well, with such an unprecedented maneuver.
Thornton is hoping his long-time supporters will have a “senior moment” and forgive him for his trespasses. He figures if he had the opportunity, he would surely beat Hayes in a primary election.
He’s confident he will have the Republican votes to win in the general election, and as a bonus, he’s hoping he has damaged Hayes well enough to get her off the freeholder board.
Hayes sees herself the victor in the Republican split. She’s betting party loyalists will blame Thornton for the tumultuous blowup and give him a retirement party in November. She’s counting on voting for a new freeholder director next January.
The problem for Hayes is that Thornton is only one of four freeholders who sanctioned her, so she’s far from a safe landing. Hayes’s map to re-election is to keep pressing that Thornton’s nepotism and conflicts are worse than hers, and have the “women’s vote” overlook her transgressions, but candidates win elections with talent and passion, not gender. Besides, there are two independent thinking women, with unblemished records, running against her.
Ordered and paid for by Casey and Gould for Freeholder, 2700 Pacific Ave., Wildwood, NJ 08260.
