18 Atlantic Highlands voters forced into court by defeated mayor candidate seeking overturn
Michael Edelman moved to Atlantic Highlands from Philadelphia last May, excited to return to the Monmouth County Bayshore after having spent some of his youth in Middletown.
The software engineering consultant explained this in Superior Court in Freehold Feb. 20 after being subpoenaed as part of a lawsuit filed by James Murphy, who lost November’s Atlantic Highlands mayoral election by five votes.
In testimony that spread across three days and concluded Thursday, 18 voters in that election were compelled to prove that their Atlantic Highlands home is their full-time residence.
“It’s possible I haven’t changed my address everywhere (paperwork-wise), so somewhere it might say I’m in Philadelphia,” Edelman said about why he might have been challenged. “We legitimately live here. Honestly, I think it’s a giant fishing expedition.”
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Edelman said he canceled a full day’s worth of appointments at work to appear at the hearing.
“Laughable is how I would describe it,” he said of Murphy’s lawsuit. “The whole thing is incredibly silly.”
Murphy, the Republican candidate, already had requested a recount that certified Democrat Lori Hohenleitner winning by a count of 847 to 842. In his lawsuit, he contends that “illegal votes were received and that legal votes were improperly rejected.”
The lawsuit asks that the election results “should be vacated” and Murphy declared the winner. It also proposes “in the alternative, ordering a special election for the office of mayor.”
Murphy has not responded to multiple interview requests by the Asbury Park Press.
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Roughly three dozen voters were subpoenaed to testify about their residences, with names being added to and removed from the list throughout the past several weeks. Some of those summoned to testify found out they had been excused only upon arriving at the hearing.
Judge Mara Zazzali-Hogan asked attorneys on both sides to submit summations — essentially closing arguments in writing — by March 11.
Hohenleitner was sworn in Jan. 1. Murphy remains a member of the Borough Council, the sole Republican on that body.
“This was a lack of respect shown to residents of Atlantic Highlands,” Hohenleitner told the Asbury Park Press Thursday. “I’m still confident that I won this election and that I’ll be the mayor moving forward. My expectation is that our town is going to come together. This really needs to be behind us.”
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Hohenleitner also expressed concern that Murphy’s lawsuit would resonate beyond Atlantic Highlands’ borders.
“I feel like this is a test case for what folks are going try to do in the November (2024) election,” she said. “What’s not being considered here is the human element — how this is affecting each one of the people who are being accused. We’ve got to fix this in our elections because it’s tearing communities apart, and I refuse to let Atlantic Highlands be torn apart.”
Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Atlantic Highlands losing mayor candidate wants judge to overturn race
