In a 3-2 vote, the Town Council approved a change last week to a long-discussed law that restricted elected officials from holding leadership positions in any political party while also maintaining office.
The move will put Harrison in line with other communities that already implement a similar policy on holding dual political posts for its elected officials.
For more than three decades, Harrison’s ethics code mandated town officers and employees could not be district leaders, who are responsible for interviewing candidates during the nominating process for elections, for any political party or club.
However, after gaining support from most of the Town Council, elected officials in the town—the mayor, the clerk and council members—can now hold dual political positions with the approval of the ethics change.
Despite not voting in favor of the proposal, Councilman Stephen Malfitano, a Republican, said he is “absolutely in support of making the change,” adding that he couldn’t vote in favor of the change because of its timing. “It’s hard for any [political] party to argue against this, but it being in the middle of an election season creates the opportunity for politicization,” Malfitano told the Review. He further added that it’s counterintuitive for elected officials to not be part of the nominating process.
Mayor Ron Belmont and Councilman Rich Dionisio, both Republicans who are up for re-election, as well as Councilman Fred Sciliano, a Republican, voted in favor of changing the law, which will not affect other Harrison employees or appointed officials.
Echoing Malfitano’s sentiments, Councilwoman Marlane Amelio, a Republican who is up for election this year, said she could not vote in favor of the law change. “I’m just trying to avoid any misunderstandings and controversy,” she said. “Whenever there is something so highly controversial with the potential for misconception, I just feel it’s best to delay its passage.”
Amelio, who is joined on the GOP ticket by Dionisio, Belmont, and Town Clerk Jackie Greer this year, added that she doesn’t believe the law change was driven by politics, however.
On the other side of the political aisle, Town Council candidate Frank Gordon, the only true Democrat running in the upcoming election, said the decision will create an atmosphere for conflicts of interest. “It will allow for almost every decision made [by the Town Council] to be influenced by a party’s platform,” he added, explaining that elected officials who serve as district leaders will be expected to pursue the ends of their party instead of looking at the public’s interest first.
