Kravil Wins Close Cinnaminson Committee Race: Unofficial Results

CINNAMINSON, NJ — It appears as though Republican incumbent Stephanie Kravil has fended off a challenge from Democratic challenger Lisa Killion-Smith in Tuesday night's Cinnaminson Township Committee election, according to unofficial results.

According to results posted on the county website late Tuesday night, Kravil had 2,269 votes compared to 1,894 for Killion-Smith. Results are unofficial until certified by the county clerk. A total of 4,070 residents voted in this election.

Michael Bramhall, Christine Trampe and Christine Turner all ran unopposed for seats on the Cinnaminson Public School District’s Board of Education. Turner collected 2,537 votes, followed by Bramhall with 2,453 and Trampe with 2,420 votes. There were 70 write-in votes.

A cartridge malfunction prevented the fully tally of all votes cast Tuesday night, according to the Burlington County Clerk's Office. The votes associated with that cartridge counted on Wednesday, and final unofficial results were posted just after 3 p.m.

Provisional and mail-in-ballots still must be counted. Results will remain unofficial until certified by the county clerk.

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CINNAMINSON TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE ELECTION RESULTS (1 seat, winner in bold):

STEPHANIE KRAVIL: 1,919
LISA KILLION-SMITH: 1,545

"I would like to thank everyone who supported me over the last year in my bid for Cinnaminson Township Committee," Killion-Smith said in a Facebook post Wednesday morning. " I would like to congratulate Stephanie Kravil on her victory. I know she will continue to work hard for all of Cinnaminson."

She went on to say that this election marked the beginning of a true two-party system in Cinnaminson.

"The Democrat party is alive and well in Cinnaminson and I look forward to the great things we will do in 2020 and beyond," Killion-Smith said. "The Cinnaminson Democrats meet the second Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. at the Cinnaminson Community Center. Stop by, join us, get involved and be your own voice for change!"

For a long time, there were no contested elections in Cinnaminson. That changed in 2017, when Ernest McGill and Ryan Horner defeated then-mayor Anthony Minniti and June Neuman in the Republican Primary.

Still, there was no general election that year. Then, in 2018, the Democratic Party saw a resurgence in Cinnaminson. While the Township Committee is made up exclusively of Republicans, there are more Democrats in the township than one might suspect. Independents actually make up the majority of voters, and this year, voters had a choice come November.

Within the last week, Kravil appealed to voters to vote regardless of political affiliation, and said Killion-Smith was engaging in "gutter politics."

“My opponent’s campaign is asking for your vote simply because she represents a certain political party; I am asking for your vote because I want to work hard and represent all residents regardless of political affiliation,” Kravil said in a Facebook post on Monday.

The comments came after Killion-Smith sent out a flyer connecting Kravil to President Donald Trump. The flyer showed a picture of Trump on the left, with the words, “Vote No To Trump Politics And No To Stephanie Kravil” and Kravil’s picture on the right.

After Kravil’s campaign initially fired back at Killion-Smith for negative campaigning, Killion-Smith’s campaign responded by writing, “If you are embarrassed to be linked with the leader of your party then your issue is with him, not your Democratic opponent. This is part of the typical partisan politics that put party over people.”

Both candidates said they were looking to do what was best for all Cinnaminson residents, regardless of political affiliation.

See related:
Meet Cinnaminson Committee Candidate Stephanie Kravil
Meet Cinnaminson Committee Candidate Lisa Killion-Smith