Failing to grasp the urgency of an election calendar, Superior Court Judge John Deitch has moved a hearing on a ballot access case in Hillside from October 3 to September 15, which still means council candidate Sonya McBurrows will lose weeks of campaigning, and Hillside voters might not get their vote-by-mail ballots on time.
Hours after a New Jersey Globe story noted Deitch’s Alice-in-Wonderland scheduling order, Deitch this morning ordered the Union County Clerk to halt the printing vote-by-mail ballots that are due to be mailed on September 20.
Hillside Township Clerk Rayna Harris invalidated enough signatures to get McBurrows tossed from the ballot, but the candidate’s attorney, Jason Sena, said she was never notified that he petitions had been challenged.
Deitch has given an attorney representing McBurrows two days to personally serve the defendants in the lawsuit, a punk move that denied a request by Sena to serve them via an overnight delivery service with signature confirmation, like Federal Express.
McBurrow is one of eight candidates for three at-large council seats in the November 4 non-partisan election in Hillside. She is running on a slate with Mayor Dahlia Vertreese.
The judiciary did not respond to an email on Sunday, but did respond on Monday morning.
“Will look into this and let you know if we have a response,” said Pete McAleer, a courts spokesman.
