2023 Election Results: Moorestown School Board Race, Amusement-Game Referendum

This article was last updated at 10:44 p.m. Tuesday.

MOORESTOWN, NJ — Two incumbent candidates and one newcomer lead Moorestown's school board election with all precincts reporting. Local residents also voted 2-to-1 to pave the way for Moorestown Mall to build a massive entertainment complex.

Jaclyn Barnes led all Moorestown Board of Education candidates with 3,196 votes as of 10:45 p.m. Tuesday. Board Members Maurice "Mick" Weeks (3,107 votes) and Brooke Mailhiot (2,538) held the second- and third-highest vote totals, respectively.

Marisa M. Cohen received 2,448 votes, while David C. Hoffman held 1,946 votes.

All Moorestown districts have reported vote totals, but Election Night results remain unofficial until certified.

Meanwhile, 67 percent of Moorestown voters opted to rescind a township law that bans "games of chance," such as arcade games. The referendum's passage gives Moorestown Mall the opportunity to build a proposed entertainment complex featuring go-karts, a trampoline park, laser tag and more.

PREIT — the mall's parent company which has financially struggled in recent years — launched a campaign last summer to collect enough voter signatures for a November ballot question to rescind the law.

The entertainment center can help secure the mall's future as a community hub and aid Moorestown's economy, PREIT CEO Joe Coradino said earlier this year.

"By voting yes, residents will be able to access family-friendly entertainment in their backyard, while furthering local economic growth, job opportunities, and revenue for businesses in and around the mall," Coradino said in September.

In 1959, Moorestown opted out of the state's New Jersey State Amusement Games Licensing Law. The state measure allowed municipalities to permit "games of chance" that involve the award of prizes or issuance of amusement tickets. Local governments can only authorize the licensing of such amusement games via referendum.

New Jersey's amusement-gaming law does not apply to gambling. So the referendum's passage won't bring a casino to Moorestown.

View the election tallies below:

Moorestown Board of Education (vote for three):

100 percent of districts reporting

• Jaclyn Barnes: 3,196 votes
• Brooke Mailhiot: 2,538 votes
• David C. Hoffman: 1,946 votes
• Marisa M. Cohen: 2,448 votes
• Maurice "Mick" Weeks: 3,107 votes

Ballot question to rescind a law that prohibits certain amusement games in the township:

100 percent of districts reporting

• Yes: 3,530 votes
• No: 1,742 votes