Every week, The Sun will ask candidates in the Nov. 8 election for a committee seat to respond to questions pertinent to local issues.
This week’s questions: Why are you running for town council, and if elected/re-elected what would be your top priority?
Name: Tom Fanelli
Age: 62
Occupation: Retired from the State of New Jersey — Division of Developmental Disabilities. Currently a school bus driver for the Eastern Regional and Voorhees Township school districts
Political Affiliation: Democrat
Clubs/Organizations: Voorhees Planning Board (chairman); member St. Andrew The Apostle RC Church (leader Lector Ministry, eucharistic minister, marriage Prep Program); former member of Lindenwold Board of Education and Lindenwold Zoning Board of Adjustment; Rutgers University — bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in public administration.
Why are you running for township committee?
I am running because I am dedicated to community service. Unlike my opponent, I am not a career politician. I have spent the last 20 years volunteering my time on the Voorhees Planning Board. Voorhees residents and their families must come first. I want to use my community service to keep our township moving forward.
If elected, what would be your top priority?
My top priority will be to make sure that Voorhees families and our schools are safe. Unlike my opponent, I will vote in favor of putting more police in our schools and our streets. I am also committed to cutting spending and reducing the size of government while maintaining the quality municipal services Voorhees residents expect and deserve.
Name: Michael S. Friedman
Age: 40
Occupation: Labor and employment attorney for Jackson Lewis P.C.
Political Affiliation: Republican
Clubs/Organizations: Katz JCC board member; Pro Bono attorney for the Wounded Warrior Project; KLEC (Kirkwood Lake Environmental Committee) member; Voorhees SPEAK (Special Needs Parents Educators and Kids) member; Voorhees Business Association member; Voorhees Schools Key Communicators member; Acorn Hill Homeowners Association; Township Committee Liason to the Berlin-Gibbsboro-Voorhees Alliance; appointee to the New Jersey-Israel Commission; creator and chair of the Voorhees Citizen’s Budget Advisory Committee and 2015 Voorhees Breakfast Rotary “Voorhees Citizen of the Year”
Why are you running for committee?
Two words: “checks and balances.” I have proudly served as your committeeman for the past six years and want to ensure that all of Voorhees continues to be represented, not just the friends and cronies of the majority. To put it simply, Voorhees residents cannot afford to go backward to the days of absolute 5–0 one-party control over our tax dollars with no discussion, no dissent and, worse, no openness.
If elected, what would be your top priority?
Besides ensuring the public safety of all of our citizens, my top priority is increasing non-tax revenue to our township through public private naming rights sponsorships, instead of simply going to the taxpayers for more money every time the township’s infrastructure or ball fields need improvements as the township has done in the past.
