Voting 'No' to West Windsor election partisanship (MARTIN WHITFIELD OPED)

As a respected Democrat and community supporter, I wanted to take the time to personally encourage the residents of West Windsor to vote “no” on the election day ballot question in order to make our municipal elections “partisan.” We’ve had “nonpartisan” elections for more than thirty years, and the system works.

As the first African American man elected to West Windsor City Council in our borough’s 227-year history, I am proud that our residents saw Me for Me. Because when we sit down and talk, we generally have far more similarities with each other than differences. And that has nothing to do with a ‘D’ or ‘R’ next to our name.

Ask yourself this question: is what we consistently see at the national level in politics what we want to see as a township? There must be something special and good about maintaining the PURITY of things these days, especially in politics/elections. So why change now? How would this change benefit all of us, especially our independent voters? That won’t happen.

We all agree that divisive rhetoric and behavior must stop and do nothing to move our township forward! West Windsor is one of the most desirable townships not only in our state, but in the country. I personally grew up in an urban, poor and very PARTISAN city. So I certainly know the difference and have always been grateful to live here.

More importantly, I am honored to say that I was ELECTED by the people, not because of my party affiliation or because I was selected for a vote by a small group of Democrats in the city. That removes our independents from the pure political process mentioned above. So why would we want to do that if we cared so much about ALL our residents?

Now ask yourself another question: isn’t that the DEMOCRACY we actually want? Isn’t that the opportunity we want for our children and the next generation? Isn’t that what my grandfather and so many other family members fought for in the Deep South, from slavery through the civil rights movement and to this day? To have an election decided that is fair, just and based largely on a person’s contributions, their service, their character, their commitment and their merit? Personally, that’s the way I want to WIN and as a former Division 1 basketball player, it’s the way I was trained to WIN!

But when we do some research on candidates who WON elections versus candidates who LOST elections, what we find in the results is clearly based on your community’s resume. Has nothing to do with party membership. For example, over the past ten years (3-4 election cycles – mayor, city council, and/or school board), the WINNERS of those elections have won based on their contributions, their efforts, family values, their dedication, and their business acumen. /experience and especially their selfless actions and years of service to our residents. It wasn’t about political beliefs at all. Do you now see the difference and perhaps why there is an urge for party politics in our municipality?

And for those who question transparency and involvement, there is actually more community involvement in recent years than ever before, i.e. social media, council meetings, community and social events, etc. There is more community awareness among all of us on Council . and government, including knowing our political preferences. This Council has participated and been visible at school, social, sporting, business and cultural events in this municipality and is in constant dialogue with our residents at all these events. We listen and discuss concerns with our residents and as you can see, we are out in the community spending countless hours covering ALL things West Windsor!

But here’s the REAL thing: this township is not about the two major political parties. Never been. The beauty of West Windsor and why it continues to rank so highly as a Township and School District is that an abundance of elected and unelected individuals/residents, volunteers, previous governments, teachers/educators, parents/students and community organizations have built and has catapulted this township into what it is.

YOU – the RESIDENTS OF THIS COMMUNITY matter most, whether you are an Independent, Democrat or Republican. WE HAVE ALL COLLECTIVELY CONTRIBUTED to the success of West Windsor, but in recent years a small group of people in this large township have consistently criticized and now want to change the election process. Why?

Our nonpartisan system has produced a current council that exudes diversity of thought, as well as ethnic and religious diversity (2 Jewish-Americans, 1 Indian-American, 1 Polish-American, and 1 African-American), political diversity (3 Democrats, 1 Independent , 1 Republican) and gender diversity (3 women, 2 men).

If residents vote “Yes” on the ballot question to become partisan, I will have to be selected by the same small group of people, some of whom have unfortunately publicly said that I am not a “good Democrat” or a “real Democrat.” So, what would be my chances of getting the approval of this small select group in that private meeting and being selected to represent the Democrats on the ballot?

In addition to creating more division in the community, most are unaware that this push for a “yes” vote could also be a way to push people like me and my years of service into this incredible community, beyond the confines of the world. vote as a Democrat. And that is not right, certainly not democratic and could possibly allow someone with far fewer contributions to represent the party. Is that what we want, West Windsor?

Nonpartisan is the most fair and just election for this municipality, according to the makeup of our incredible residents: Independents/Democrats/Republicans.

I am proud to be the first African American man elected to West Windsor City Council because I won based on merit, experience, contributions and pure love for this community, and not on endorsement by the party.

So I am undeniable PROOF that ON-PARTISAN worked! Please vote ‘NO’ on the voting question and let’s keep working!

–Martin Whitfield

Martin Whitfield has served on the West Windsor Township Council since 2021 and previously served on the West Windsor-Plainsboro Board of Education since 2017.