PLEASANTVILLE – High School Principal Stephen L. Townsend and his staff and students spent last week donating money, collecting goods, buying subs and more to benefit the many victims of Hurricane Sandy.

To the editor:
Republicans in name only abound, and it turns out they are actually Democratic liberals in conservative clothing. House Speaker John Boehner is part of the prevailing old school of politics that should be renamed the Incumbent Party, as nothing else matters but perpetual re-election that is certainly not the will of the people.

Mark Twain had it right with his political philosophy: "Vote the rascals out."

ABSECON – Democrat John Armstrong defeated Republican Councilman Gerald Falivene by 197 votes Tuesday, Nov. 6 to win the contest for mayor, according to Election Day results posted by Atlantic County Clerk Edward A. McGettigan.

Results will become official after they are certified.

Armstrong captured 1,943 votes, or 51.68 percent of votes cast. Falivene received 1,746 votes, or 44 percent.

Armstrong will replace longtime Mayor Pete Elco, a former Holy Spirit High School English teacher, who began his first term in 1989.

“I feel very satisfied,” Armstrong said Wednesday morning after a few hours’ sleep. “We went around town and picked up campaign signs this morning.”

But now the real work begins, he said.

“With the exception of maybe eight or nine houses, I talked to everybody in the city,” Armstrong said. “And when you do that, you get an internal Rolodex of people and their problems and their concerns. There are a number of things I need to follow up on.”

Armstrong said that he also needs to reach out to those voters who supported Falivene.

“There are a lot of people that voted for me, but a lot of people also voted for Jerry,” he said. “I want to reach out to them and their needs as well.”

Two council seats and two school board seats were also decided Tuesday.

In the 1st Ward, Republican Frank Phillips won a three-year seat on council with 1,056 votes, or 53.46 percent, defeating Bart C. Richter, who collected 920, or 45.54 percent.

Democrat Sandy Shenk Cain captured 952 votes, or 55.87 percent, to defeat Charles S. Urban III, who got 752 votes, or 44.13 percent, to represent the city’s 2nd Ward for the next three years.

In a close school board race, Chris Cottrell won 1,329 votes or 36.24 percent, and Stan Kolbe Jr. received 1,190 votes or 32.45 percent, to win the two open seats on the Absecon Board of Education.

John Rynnkiewicz Jr. finished third with 1,140 votes, or 31.09 percent.

Channel 10 NBC-TV television news footage shows that a portion of Route 30 in the eastern end of Absecon has washed out near the Delilah Road overpass. Rains form Hurricane Sandy filled up the waters of Absecon Bay which flooded the area and undermined the roadway. 

Area residents should be aware of a possible “major” storm on Monday, according to an advisory posted Tuesday afternoon by the National Weather Service’s Mt. Holly Forecast Office.

According to Meteorologist Gary Szatkowski, the remains of Tropical Storm Sandy could ride up the coast as a slow-moving nor’easter early next week. A period of heavy rain and wind could come as early as Sunday evening and last until Tuesday.