By Donald Wittkowski
There’s one new voter Lenny Desiderio can certainly count on to support his re-election bid as Cape May County freeholder.
Now that she’s of voting age, his 20-year-old daughter, Carmela, is making it clear that she’s squarely in her dad’s corner for the Nov. 6 election.
“Every time he ran before, I was never old enough to vote for him. This election is special for me because it is the first time I can vote for my dad,” Camela Desiderio said.
Already an active member of her father’s campaign, Carmela took on a higher-profile role Saturday by organizing a combination party-political rally on his behalf in Sea Isle City that drew a who’s who of Cape May County Republican politics.
“I’m just glad she can’t run against me,” Desiderio joked to his supporters while praising his daughter’s organizing skills.
An estimated 200 to 250 Republican backers packed the bar and dance floor of Kix-McNutley’s, the Sea Isle nightclub and entertainment complex owned by Desiderio, in a get-out-the-vote rally heading into the final weeks of the campaign.
“We can change the shape of the state with this election,” Cape May County Republican Party Chairman Marcus Karavan told the crowd.
Although Desiderio was the main focus of the rally, the event also was designed to boost the Republican campaigns of Seth Grossman and Bob Hugin. Grossman is taking on Democratic state Sen. Jeff Van Drew in the Second Congressional District race, while Hugin hopes to unseat incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez.
Desiderio, 61, is seeking his sixth term as freeholder. He also serves as mayor of Sea Isle, making him one of New Jersey’s rare dual officeholders.
Legislation signed by then-Gov. Jon S. Corzine in 2007 prohibited politicians from holding two elected offices simultaneously in New Jersey, but it included a “grandfather clause” exempting anyone already in those positions before the law took effect. Desiderio was grandfathered in as mayor and freeholder.
He was first appointed to the freeholder board in 2002 to fill an unexpired term. He won election to a full three-year term in 2003. He followed up with re-election wins in 2006, 2009, 2012 and 2015.
Major issues Desiderio is focusing on for this election include improving public safety and fighting the county’s opioid crisis. His little-known Democrat opponent, Jeremiah Schenerman, has been virtually invisible during the campaign. Desiderio acknowledged Saturday that he doesn’t even know Schenerman’s name.
Desiderio, however, assured his supporters that he has no plans to ease up on the campaign trail. He also promised to continue working hard, in a bipartisan fashion, to “make Cape May County the best county in the state of New Jersey.”
“Our friends in Washington and our friends in Trenton could take a little lesson from what we do here,” he said, taking a swipe at the divisive federal and state politics.
Although Republicans dominated the rally, Ocean City Councilman Bob Barr, a Democrat, was in attendance to throw his support behind Desiderio.
“I go by the person. I don’t go by the party,” Barr said.
Barr praised Desiderio’s bipartisan skills, saying his willingness to “always listen to both sides” has benefited the entire county.
“Lenny’s a go-getter,” Barr said. “He’s a people person. That’s why it’s important for him to win re-election.”
Barr’s fellow Ocean City Councilman Keith Hartzell, a Republican, called Desiderio “the consummate public servant.”
“He’s an old-time politician – in a good sense, not in a bad sense,” Hartzell said. “He works very well with both sides.”
“I’m proud that he’s my friend and my freeholder,” Hartzell added.
Desiderio’s quest for a new term on the freeholder board is expected to be followed next year by his re-election bid as Sea Isle’s mayor. His mayoral term expires in 2019. Although Desiderio hasn’t formally announced his plans yet for 2019, Sea Isle Council President Jack Gibson said he fully expects him to run for mayor.
Carmela Desiderio, meanwhile, said in an interview that she is already entertaining thoughts of her own political career, perhaps even replacing her father as mayor when he retires.
“Maybe my name will be on those signs someday,” she said, pointing toward her father’s campaign signs. “If I do run, I know he’ll be my campaign manager.”
