2021 10th District Election: Who's Running, When, Where To Vote

NEW JERSEY — When voters go to the polls Tuesday, among the races Ocean County residents will be casting ballots in are the legislative races.

That includes the 10th District, which includes Bay Head, Brick Township, Island Heights, Lakehurst, Lavallette, Manchester Township, Mantoloking, Point Pleasant Beach, Seaside Heights and Toms River.

The state Senate race features Republican Jim Holzapfel, the incumbent, who is being challenged by Democrat Emma Mammano.

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In the race for the two Assembly seats, the Republican candidates are Gregory McGuckin and John Catalano; the Democrats are Garrit "Tony" Kono and Mary "Sharon" Quilter.

The 10th District typically votes heavily Republican. In 2020, Democrat Andy Kim, whose 3rd Congressional District encompasses much of the 10th District, managed just under 42 percent of the vote in the district (Burlington County voters overwhelmingly chose Kim, however).

Holzapfel is long-established both as a state senator and in the county; he served as Ocean County prosecutor for several years before being elected to the state Legislature.

Mammano, a Brick Township resident, has not been deterred by the district's voting history and has had a very active campaign.

McGuckin and Catalano faced a challenge in the Republican primary that resulted from an ongoing battle within the Ocean County Republican party, as George Gilmore, the former head of the Ocean County Republican Club, tries to regain control of the county's GOP.

Kono and Quilter's candidacy was challenged in April by Republican State Committee member Tom Syzmanski; that challenge was rejected, the New Jersey Globe reported. Kono is a Brick resident and Quilter lives in Seaside Heights.

The prime issue facing the district has been the fight over school funding and the significant state aid cuts to the Brick and Toms River school districts under S2.

Holzapfel, McGuckin and Catalano have spoken out against the cuts repeatedly. They also have introduced legislation on several occasions to try to address the cuts in other ways, but face resistance because the Legislature has Democratic majorities and state Senate President Stephen Sweeney championed S2.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

The Rundown

• Election date: Nov. 2
• Where can I drop off my ballot?
• Track my mail-in ballot.
• Where can I vote in person?

If you're among the 54,000 Ocean County voters who received vote-by-mail ballots — they were sent to anyone who voted by mail in 2016, 2017, 2018 or 2019 — you can turn in your ballot at a secure drop box or hand-deliver it to the Ocean County Board of Elections, by 8 p.m. Tuesday. If you mail it back, it must be postmarked by Nov. 2.

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