By Stephen Appezzato
In our continuing coverage of the general election Nov. 7, The Two River Times reached out to candidates in our coverage area to get their perspective on effective governance and the impact voting can have on a community.
In our final week we highlight candidates in the races for Legislative District 11 and their responses to the following question:
How do government decisions on the state level affect the day-to-day lives of voters?
The New Jersey State Senate and General Assembly make up the state’s legislative branch of government. Each chamber consists of 40 and 80 representatives, respectively, from 40 different districts across the state. Senators serve four-year terms, except for the first term of a new decade (when they only serve two years), while Assembly members serve two-year terms.
Legislative District 11 includes the Two River area towns of Colts Neck, Fair Haven, Red Bank, Shrewsbury and Tinton Falls.
This year Democratic Sen. Vin Gopal and Republican Assembly members Marilyn Piperno and Kim Eulner are running for reelection on different slates. Political newcomer Steve Dnistrian is running for Senate alongside Piperno and Eulner, while Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul are running for Assembly as Democrats with Gopal.
To learn more about your local candidates and their views on issues facing your community and to check your voter registration status or register to vote, visit vote411.org.
Candidates are listed alphabetically with their party affiliation noted. Responses have been lightly edited for style and to fit the allotted space.
For State Senate
Steve Dnistrian (R): “After spending 35 years in the business and non-profit worlds, this
is my first time ever running for public office. In many ways, I’m your typical, middle-of-the road voter. Proudly, I’m the son of immigrants and a first generation American. I’ve grown sick and tired of seeing how the state’s destructive policies have impacted our lives here in Monmouth County. That’s why I’m running. We have the highest property taxes in the country, the worst business environment and more bonded debt than any other state. Nothing has been done to address these major issues. And over the last seven years alone, the state budget has gone from $34 billion to $54 billion. Here in Monmouth County, the state’s poor policy decisions are impacting every aspect of our lives. My opponent has voted in favor of these runaway budget increases; in favor of a law that has cut $70 million in state aid from our schools; and voted in favor of soft-on-crime policies that have sparked an unprecedented crime wave. He resisted calls to investigate the deaths of more than 200 veterans in state-run nursing homes, and has supported the governor’s plan to ban gas stoves and gas cars in the next 10 years — with all costs being placed on the shoulders of the people. We need more ‘outsiders’ to step in and run the state. One-party rule in Trenton – with career politicians making the decisions – has failed. We can do better with more checks and balances, and real leadership that rejects politics as usual.”
Sen. Vin Gopal (D): “Serving as an elected official in a state whose population is over 9 million means that every decision and vote has the potential to directly impact millions of real lives, both positively or negatively. It is imperative that elected officials remember why we were elected to serve and who we are there to represent.
Every day, I make decisions based on what is best for Monmouth County families. Whether that means partnering with Republicans to create legislation that helps our small businesses, bipartisanly passing Stay NJ, the largest property tax cut in the history of New Jersey, or serving as a prime sponsor of the 2021 legislation that kept the right to choose legal in New Jersey, I will always put Monmouth County families before partisan politics. Unfortunately, across the country, we are seeing state legislators make the opposite decisions – putting partisan politics before their constituents’ best interests. This is causing real harm, from higher taxes and worse schools to stripping away the freedoms of women. We need to make sure Monmouth County and New Jersey continue to have leadership that puts the interests of families and seniors first. It is why I am so excited to be running with Dr. Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul, who are both fantastic local leaders who I know will work across the aisle to bring home real results for Monmouth County families.”
For State Assembly
Margie Donlon (D): “As deputy mayor of Ocean Township and a board-certified rehabilitation doctor, I have spent my time in Monmouth County fighting for residents and improving patients’ lives through rehabilitation medicine. When I became a doctor, I took the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm, but any good doctor knows our job is much more than that – our job is to help people. I became deputy mayor of Ocean Township to help people, too, and I am now running for Assembly for that exact same reason.
Too often decisions are made at the state level based purely on divisive politics and without consideration for the lives those decisions will affect. I see it firsthand in Ocean Township where the work done by the state legislature impacts everything from property taxes and school funding to deer population management. As a physician, I see how decisions impact my patients, including prescription drug costs, access to health care, and health care affordability. Local leaders, like myself, know better than anyone the local impact our legislature has, and we also know the issues that are top of mind for voters. It is why my running mates, Sen. Vin Gopal and Luanne Peterpaul, and I are running together to cut property taxes, support law enforcement, and protect a woman’s right to choose. These are the issues that voters care about and they are the issues that the legislature must address to have a positive effect on voters’ day-to-day lives.”
Kim Eulner (R): “Most decisions made in Trenton affect our day-to-day lives. The problem is that no one in the majority party in Trenton is listening. Take any issue – parents’ rights, school funding, crime, affordability, protecting our veterans, concerns about dead whales and dolphins. Trenton’s agenda, driven by Murphy and Gopal, is out of touch with the people of Monmouth County. Take crime for example. In 2018, Gopal voted in favor of lowering incarceration standards for non-violent, repeat criminal offenders in NJ. Before that happened, about 100 or so cars were stolen in Monmouth County each year. But after Murphy and Gopal changed the laws, we’ve seen as many as 680 cars stolen in a single calendar year. Just over the past several days, attempted home invasions took place in Fair Haven and Freehold. People don’t feel safe in their own homes. We’ve all seen the videos from Ring cameras as thugs case driveways in the middle of the night. Our businesses are suffering, too. Last weekend, numerous stores were broken into in Long Branch and Eatontown. One business owner asked us: ‘When will it end?’ Our response was honest and straightforward: ‘With your support, it will end on Election Day.’ We must return to common-sense policies. We simply must restore law and order in our communities. And we have to support our law enforcement officials, so they can do their jobs and keep us safe. The good news is that we know how to make this happen.”
Luanne Peterpaul (D): “As an attorney, a former county prosecutor, and a former municipal court judge, I know how decisions made at the state level can help and hurt those who call New Jersey home. It is why we must do everything we can to stop extremist politicians who want to strip away the right of women to make their own health care decisions. I also know how the responsibility of making state-level decisions can produce positive change when it is used to address the needs of New Jersey residents.
I’ve seen this awesome responsibility in action firsthand. In 2010, in the midst of a teen mental health crisis and in the aftermath of the suicide of Tyler Clementi, parents, children, and teachers called on the state legislature to act. I helped to lead that charge when I, along with some amazing individuals and organizations, drafted and then worked with legislators from both parties to pass New Jersey’s ‘Anti-bullying Bill of Rights.’ The legislation earned near-unanimous bipartisan support because it grew out of the day-to-day needs of residents, not extreme party talking points or wish lists.
My running mates, Sen. Vin Gopal and Dr. Margie Donlon, and I are running to address the needs of our constituents – the issues we hear about at doorsteps, diners, and our own kitchen tables. We’re running to cut property taxes, support law enforcement, and protect women’s reproductive freedom and the rights of all New Jersey citizens. Voters want to see these issues addressed, they want the legislature to have a positive impact on their lives, and our team will get it done.”
Marilyn Piperno (R): “I’ve been in office for just one term. We need more people like Kim, Steve and I – working parents – to step in and provide common-sense leadership. How do state decisions affect our lives? Just look at what’s happening in our schools. The state is suing three school boards here in Monmouth County to keep parents out of discussions should a child – as young as 5, 6 or 7 – want to change their sexual identity while in school. Gov. Murphy and Vin Gopal have gone too far with this radical policy and parents, like us, are fighting back. More than 80 percent of parents in New Jersey want to be notified should this issue arise in school, yet Trenton – under one-party rule – refuses to listen. That makes no sense to any of us who are parents. Additionally, this administration is actively defunding schools in Monmouth County and sending our tax dollars to other parts of the state. Teachers have been cut, classroom sizes are growing and education of children will suffer.
When serious issues arise in our school, parents should always be involved. Parents need open dialogue and partnerships with teachers and administrators to ensure the best possible learning experience for children. Gov. Murphy went on national television and called the state’s legal actions against our schools a “culture war.” That’s insensitive and wrong. Because of his loyalty to Murphy, Gopal has stood by silent, complicit in these actions. It’s time for ordinary people, like us, to step in and do what our constituents want done.”
The article originally appeared in the October 26 – November 1, 2023 print edition of The Two River Times.
