Ex-Parsippany Dem. Candidate Crosses Party Lines For Endorsement

PARSIPPANY, NJ — Parsippany Township Council candidate Justin Musella received an endorsement from an arguably unlikely source. Former Democratic candidate Nick Kumburis touted the Republican for the role.

Kumburis ran for council in 2015, but the Democratic ticket fell short against the trio of Republicans. He won the election to the Parsippany-Troy Hills Board of Education the year after. Kumburis resigned Jan. 1, 2018, stating in his resignation letter that he fulfilled his goals in picking the right superintendent for the district and ensuring fiscal responsibility.

School board members run nonpartisan campaigns, but Kimburis's Democratic candidacy in 2015 shows he crossed party lines for the endorsement. Kumburis did not weigh in on any other Republican candidate in Parsippany.

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"In our increasingly polarized political landscape, it is critical that we elect representatives that can make decisions based on the needs of our citizens, rather than candidates, who seek only to further their party's political agenda," Kumburis said in Musella's campaign announcement. "I recognized that Justin genuinely works to understand the needs and wants of our residents and will vote in our best interest."

Kumburis praised Janice McCarthy and Emily Peterson, who represent the Democratic minority on the Township Council, as "strong, free thinking, and dedicated individuals who have consistently worked across the aisle." McCarthy and Kumburis were running mates in 2015.

Parsippany faces a pivotal election Nov. 2. Mayor Michael Soriano is running with fellow Democrats Cori A. Herbig and Judith Hernandez. Former mayor James Barberio is running for the position with council hopefuls Musella and Frank Neglia, who currently serves as school board president.

Criticisms of the Administration

Kumburis also took shots at the Soriano administration in his endorsement.

"With critical issues affecting our township," Kumburis said, "such as a budget crisis that our mayor has declined to take responsibility for, an unnecessary conflict between the administration and the BOE over school security, and a complete disregard for the will of Parsippany residents when it comes to overdevelopment, it is important we elect Justin to 'clean up Parsippany' after this election."

Officials typically determine municipal budgets during the early months of the year. Parsippany faced delays, because the pandemic exacerbated the township's financial shortfalls.

The council and mayor agreed June 1 for the township to take out an emergency loan of $2.3 million, which it's positioned to fully pay off once the township receives federal COVID-relief funds in 2022. Read more: Emergency Loan Proposal Slashed More Than 50% In Parsippany

Soriano presented a budget at July 20's council meeting, and he has received criticism for the delayed process in the council passing the budget. But Soriano said council has had enough time to read the budget and move it through the process.

"I presented a budget two weeks ago on July 20, and I worked in conjunction with the State to ensure it followed all fiscal regulations," Soriano said via a spokesperson. "The budget presented to the town council on 7/20 is balanced, includes improvements for the town, police overtime, and does not raise taxes by nearly 15% as Council President Michael dePierro had proposed."

Kumburis also referenced the continued conflict between the township and the board of education, who are working to determine how they will fund the shared service of police in schools.

Soriano and the Township Council sent a proposed funding plan to the school district July 12. But the board of education disapproved of aspects of the proposal. As outlined, there would be no changes to the school resource officer program's funding for the first year.

For the second and third years, the board would bear 50 percent of the actual program cost for school resource officers, which includes school resource officer base salaries, allowances, uniform costs, training, equipment, overtime, longevity and fringe benefits.

"The Board has never, since the inception of this program, paid half of all costs associated with these positions," the board said in a statement. "The costs cited by the Township ... are costs that the Township incurs regardless of whether these officers are stationed in our schools or elsewhere."

Soriano previously praised the township's proposal, which marked an agreement across partisan lines.

"This has always been about how the program is funded between our civic partners," Soriano said. "This is a non-partisan proposal that all six of us — three Republicans and three Democrats — agree on. Our shared services make our township strong, and the more we collaborate equally, the better our whole community is."

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