They are quitting - all but one of them.
Amid controversy over the perks they accepted in office, Montclair’s mayor and five of its six council members have bowed out of this spring’s municipal election, deciding against seeking new terms on the Essex County township’s governing board.
That means that when local voters cast their ballots on May 14, they’ll see plenty of fresh faces among the 15 candidates. Just one sitting member — longtime councilman Bob Russo — is running for reelection after Montclair was roiled by explosive allegations from a whistleblower who accused its leaders of wrongdoing.
Those stepping back include Mayor Sean Spiller, the president of the powerful New Jersey Education Association whose name is often floated as a some-day candidate for governor. Spiller announced last month he was not running for a second term as mayor, saying on social media that he “could not be more proud of all we have accomplished together.”
Spiller is one of five current board members who used their $10,000-a-year posts to sign up for taxpayer-funded health insurance or payments for declining it. A lawsuit by Montclair’s chief financial officer, Padmaja Rao, accused those members of accepting benefits they weren’t entitled to, saying they ran afoul of a 2010 law that requires elected officials to work full-time to be eligible for coverage through the State Health Benefits Program.
Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller (right) announced last week that he is not seeking reelection. He is shown here at a 2021 rally for reproductive rights.Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media
Rao charges she was retaliated against after raising concerns they were working only part-time hours, among other improprieties she alleged at the township hall. Spiller’s announcement on Feb. 29 made no reference to the controversy, though his decision came just three days after a deposition he gave in the civil case was made public in court filings.
During the January deposition, Spiller repeatedly invoked his right against self-incrimination to avoid answering questions from Rao’s lawyers. That came at the advice of his attorney, Frank Arleo, after the Attorney General’s Office reportedly subpoenaed township records related to the coverage as part of a criminal probe.
Arleo said his client wanted to tell his side of the story.
“I said, ‘Don’t do it,’” Arleo said, adding: “I feel sorry for Sean Spiller because he’s being beaten up in the press because of me.”
Spiller joins former council member Peter Yacobellis, who resigned in October to move to Washington state, in asserting his Fifth Amendment right to refuse to testify, according to Nancy Erika Smith, an attorney for Rao.
Smith expects other council members to do likewise when they sit for depositions in the coming weeks. She said she believes their decision to leave the political arena is tied to the scandal and residents’ unhappiness over it.
“I think there was not a chance in hell any of the people who took medical benefits and are being criminally investigated were going to win an election,” Smith said.
Spiller did not return a phone call. But two council members who are also bowing out denied they were spurred by the strife.
Councilman David Cummings said he took a new job a year ago whose time commitment made it too difficult to serve.
“It had nothing to do with the controversy of this council, and everything to do with the fact that I have a new position that I started,” said Cummings, who defended his performance in office. “I will put my behavior, my ethical standards, up against anything.”
Councilwoman Robin Schlager said the time was right to move on and cede leadership to others in town.
“If I was afraid of controversy, I wouldn’t have served on the council for 16 years,” Schlager said. “I wouldn’t have ran five times.”
Township records show Schlager, Cummings and Spiller received tens of thousands of dollars worth of health insurance or payments for waiving it before Montclair ceased those benefits in late 2022. So did council members William Hurlock and Lori Price Abrams, who did not respond to requests for comment about their decisions to not seek reelection.
The fifth member who is not running, Roger Terry, was appointed last year to fill Yacobelli’s vacant seat after the benefits were ended. A retired Montclair deputy police chief, Terry said he was 85% certain, even at the time, that he wouldn’t try to remain in office.
“At this point in my life, at my age, there’s a lot of things I still want to do,” said Terry, who is 74. He praised his fellow board members while nodding to the conflict the township has seen.
“They’re all good people,” Terry said. “Nobody does this job because they want to fail or they want to see the town fail.”
That leaves Russo the only incumbent on the ballot. And unlike his colleagues besides Terry, Russo neither took insurance nor payments for declining it, and he has publicly criticized those perks.
“Everybody asked me to please stay because they know I’ve been very honest, I’ve been very transparent,” said Russo, the board’s longest-serving member. “I know this is a volunteer position. I know that it’s a part-time position.”
Russo added: “I think the people are so fed up, they want a whole new council to be elected, except for me.”
Montclair Councilman Bob Russo (center) is the only incumbent on the board to seek reelection this year. He is shown at a 2022 municipal meeting.
At the top of the ticket, voters will choose between two candidates for mayor: Christina Thomas, a local attorney, and Renée Baskerville, a council member from 2008 to 2020 who unsuccessfully ran for mayor that year against Spiller in a close race.
Baskerville, a pediatrician, said she intends to be a full-time mayor if elected. She said she wants the council to return to the respectful and collaborative body she experienced during her tenure.
“I don’t see that today,” Baskerville said. “I see a lack of civility. I see a lack of integrity.”
Thomas said she was driven to run by the performance of Montclair’s board, whose members she charged are dismissive of residents, wasteful of taxpayer money and “haven’t been doing their job in general.”
“It’s very frustrating for the public, including me, to sit there and watch these meetings and be like, ‘Are you kidding me?’” Thomas said.
The ballot includes two slates of candidates that are running together.
The “Montclair Good Government Team” includes Russo and Carmel Loughman for Montclair’s two at-large council seats, Ilmar Vanderer in the 2nd Ward, Roddy Moore in the 3rd Ward and Aminah Toler in the 4th Ward.
“Together Montclair” features Baskerville, Susan Shin Andersen for at-large councilor, Shivaun Gaines in the 1st Ward and Rahum Williams in the 3rd Ward.
The six other candidates are running on their own.
Stories by Riley Yates
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Riley Yates may be reached at ryates@njadvancemedia.com.