Get To Know Washington Township Committee Candidate Matt Murello

Editor's Note: Patch sent out questionnaires to every candidate who filed a petition of candidacy by the deadline. We sent them to the email addresses registered as the official campaign emails at the County Clerk's Office. We will run the responses in the order they were received with no edits. Those candidates who did not receive a questionnaire should double check their spam folders, email filed with the clerk and contact russ.crespolini@patch.com for a form.

Name

Matthew Murello

Age (as of Election Day)

49

Position Sought

Township Committee

Party Affiliation

Republican

Family

Wife, Kristine, and two children

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering, University of Hartford

Occupation

Small Business Owner and Consulting Engineer for 27 yrs

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Township Committee / Mayor

Campaign website

https://www.facebook.com/WTMayorMattMurello/

Why are you seeking elective office?

I’m seeking re-election to the Township Committee to keep doing the important things we are accomplishing for the residents in this town.
The single most pressing issue facing our community is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Over the last 3 months, we have seen the devastating impact caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. Each and every resident has had to continually plan, prioritize and prepare for this, as the restrictions have been constantly changing. Our students struggled though distance learning and our small businesses are devastated. As a parent and a small business owner myself, I understand these challenges and I want to reduce government interference so I can to help people get back to work, open their businesses and get our kids back to a normal life, safely and quickly.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

While I am running unopposed in this election, my experience is what makes me the best candidate at this time. I have served for 2 terms at Committeeman, including 2 years as Vice Mayor and in my 2nd year of serving as Mayor. I am the most accessible elected official to the people in Town, meeting with any resident, group or community that I can and will work to keep going what makes Washington Township the best place to live and raise a family.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform

We have seen recently that racism sadly still exists in our area. While we have one of the safest towns in the Nation and the most professional municipal police department in the State, I will take the time to meet with, and listen to, all sides and work to take action where needed to ensure that all of our residents are treated equally.

Our Township also has one of the lowest municipal shares of property taxes in Morris County and I will continue to work to keep that tax rate low, helping our home owners and small businesses live and work in this town.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Our town has kept the municipal tax rate increase to below 2% per year, every year I’ve been elected to office. We continue to have one of the safest towns in the Nation. In addition, we maintain some of the nicest parks, trails and open spaces in this area of NJ. We also continue to improve our extensive road projects and our recreation facilities.

I worked with the schools to get School Resource Officers to keep our children safe, kept our first responders funded to purchase life-saving equipment and technology and negotiated shared services agreements with neighboring towns and departments to increase the Township’s revenue and benefit our residents.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Be prepared.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

We have been fortunate to have strong leadership from our elected officials in Washington Township for many years. I pledged to the people when I was first appointed Mayor in 2019, that I would build upon that progress. Being elected to serve the people of Washington Township is a distinct honor for me. One that I would not have ever imagined when I moved here 16 years ago. But when we have catastrophic events like the Coronavirus pandemic, I feel that my leadership is what is needed. I want to continue to lead as a Township Committeeman to work to get us back to be an equal, healthy and safe community for all of our residents.

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