Cherry Hill Mayor Election Upended As Council President Enters Race

CHERRY HILL, NJ — With the backing of several current and former local officials, Cherry Hill's council president declared his candidacy Tuesday for the township's mayoral election. Dave Fleisher's candidacy leaves Mayor Susan Shin Angulo with an uncertain political future.

Fleisher received support from all other members of the seven-chair Township Council, including three running for re-election on his ticket: Jennifer Apell,Brian Bauerle and Michele Golkow.

Angulo, Fleisher and everyone on the council president's ticket is Democratic.

Angulo hasn't announced whether she'll run for re-election. Patch contacted her for comment and will update with any response. The mayor told the Courier-Post that she's keeping her options open and "focused on guiding Cherry Hill."

"When the time is right, I will provide the public with my plans for the future — stay tuned," she told the media outlet.

Cherry Hill residents should know, at the latest, toward the end of the month whether Angulo will run again. Candidates in New Jersey have until March 27 to file a nominating petition to get on their respective primary ballot.

The news release from Fleisher's campaign, which announces his candidacy, doesn't mention Angulo at all. But the campaign says it received support from all council members and four former Cherry Hill mayors — Chuck Cahn, Susan Bass Levin, Bernie Platt and Art Simons. Camden County Commissioner Melinda Kane also supports Fleisher's candidacy.

In Fleisher's announcement, his campaign cites a "proven track record on holding the line on taxes, leading the Township Council in approving over a dozen balanced budgets with zero municipal tax increases."

"I will use my business experience to run the Township in a manner that is fiscally responsible and invests in our neighborhoods so that people can safely enjoy all Cherry Hill has to offer," Fleisher said in a statement.

The campaign also points to Fleisher's open-space advocacy, saying he was "a driving force" in passing a comprehensive ordinance last year that protects Cherry Hill's trees from getting lost to development.

Born and raised in the township, Fleisher graduated from Cherry Hill High School East before attending Ithaca College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in finance. Fleisher is president and managing partner with a financial planning firm in the Delaware Valley.

Fleisher's wife, Jen, is a member of the Board of Education for Cherry Hill Public Schools.

Angulo was a Camden County freeholder — the position now called commissioner — when she ran for Cherry Hill's mayorship in 2019. Then-Mayor Chuck Cahn decided against running for re-election. Angulo won the general election with 63.5 percent of the vote.

Angulo was elected to Township Council in 2010 and served on the county board of freeholders from 2015-19. She is the first Korean-American woman in New Jersey to hold elected office and a mayorship.

Primary Election Day in New Jersey is June 6. Find out more about voting in Camden County.