Freda, Longo Win Handily, Reorganization Meet is 6 PM May 2

William Freda and Joseph Longo were both re-elected to 3-year terms on the Belleville Board of Education tonight following a contentious campaign in which the ethical standards of incumbent board members was a central issue.

They defeated challengers Ralph Vellon and Eric Schwartz. The four were seeking two open seats. 

Longo was the leading vote-getter, with 1,177, followed by Freda with 1,140, then Vellon at 819 and Schwartz, 348, according preliminary results.* 

Voters also OK’d the 2011-12 school budget, a $59 million spending plan that calls for no increase in the overall tax levy and no reduction in academic programs, officials have said. The budget does call for 11 up to positions to be eliminated, however.  

The budget passed 838 votes to 621, according to an initial tally.* 

Voter turnout was low for this election. Just 11.8 percent of registered Belleville voters participated, according to figures released tonight by the township clerk. Polls were open today from 2 to 9 pm.

The challengers, Vellon -- a nursing administrator who has run unsuccessfully twice before -- and Schwartz, a corrections officer who previously served one term on the board but lost a re-election bid two years ago, campaigned against what they saw as a governing body beholden to outside political interests. Both candidates said that hiring decisions were made based on nepotism instead of the applicants’ qualifications, and that school employees have been demoralized by a lack of leadership.

"I'm proud of the campaign that I ran. I took the fight to them," said Vellon, who thanked his wife and other supporters. He also indicated he would likely try again for a seat on the board.  

"The issues still remain. We can't just walk away from these things. That has not gone away," he said. "My kids are going to be in the schools for another ten years at least, I'm paying taxes here, so I'm going to be around." 

Longo and Freda, who is the current board president, had flatly denied allegations made about their ethics. The two, who ran a coordinated campaign and whose names appeared together on campaign lawns signs, touted various initiatives enacted in the last 3 years, during their tenure. Those initiatives include preserving all-day kindergarten programs, introducing a school uniform policy, bringing laptops to middle school students and bringing in consultants to improve academic performance.   

"I'm completely delighted and immensely grateful to my supporters," Freda said tonight, minutes after learning of his victory at around 10 pm. "Joe and I are deeply moved by it." 

"I'm extremely gratified that the residents of Belleville were in agreement that we're going in the right direction," Longo said. "One promise we will make is that we will continue to work as hard as we ever have to continue the progress and success in the district." 

The members of the board will be formally installed during the annual reorganization meeting scheduled for May 2 at 6 pm at Belleville High School, 100 Passaic Ave.**

*This article was amended April 28 to note that results released last night were preliminary. 

**This article originally said the reorganization meeting will be held at 7 pm. It will actually be held at 6 pm. We regret the error.