Holmdel, Colts Neck Contested Races; Sherrill, Ciattarelli to Face Off for Governor
By Sunayana Prabhu and Stephen Appezzato
In Tuesday’s primary election, voters across the Two River area delivered mostly decisive wins to candidates in local, county and statewide elections, including the races for governor.
In municipal races, Holmdel and Colts Neck saw contested Republican primaries.
Here are the unofficial results of contested elections. Write-in results will be available on the county clerk’s official website once they have been reviewed and counted. Mail-in ballots postmarked by 8 p.m. June 10 and received by June 16 will be included in the final count. Provisional ballots will be processed after all eligible mail-in ballots have been accounted for, according to the county.
Buontempo, Foster Lead in Holmdel
Gregory Buontempo and incumbent Mayor Brian Foster secured the Republican nominations for Holmdel Township Committee in unofficial results in Tuesday’s primary election.
Both Foster and Buontempo defeated their running mates in the crowded Republican line, which included incumbent deputy mayor Kimberley LaMountain and Prakash Santhana.
Unofficial results of the primary elections, as of press time, showed Buontempo receiving the most votes (1,006 or 27.09%), followed closely by Foster with 993 votes (26.74%). LaMountain and Santhana trailed with 973 votes (26.20%) and 731 votes (19.68%), respectively. Eleven write-in votes were cast, accounting for 0.30% of the total.
Voters were allowed to select two candidates in the Republican contest. With all 10 voting districts reporting, 3,714 votes were cast in the GOP primary.
On the Democratic side, Allan C. Roth ran unopposed and received 837 votes (95.01%). Write-in candidates accounted for the remaining 44 votes (4.99%).
Buontempo and Foster will face Roth in the general election this November, with two seats on the township committee up for grabs.
This year’s primary unfolded amid issues such as fiscal responsibility, particularly affordable housing, and transparency in government, as municipalities across the state, including Holmdel, prepare their decade-long plan to comply with the Fair Share Housing Law.
The GOP field featured a mix of incumbents and former committee members. Foster and LaMountain ran with the official backing of the Monmouth County Republican Organization. Challenging them were Buontempo, a former mayor, and Santhana, a former deputy mayor, both listed as Holmdel Republicans. Buontempo previously served 12 years on the committee, including four as mayor, while Santhana stepped down from the committee in 2022 due to professional commitments.
That same year, Buontempo was mayor during a controversial charter study that proposed switching Holmdel’s form of government to a nonpartisan, directly elected mayor-council system – a change rejected by voters in a special referendum.
Foster, a former EMS volunteer and board of education member, joined the township committee in 2022 and has prioritized infrastructure maintenance, open space preservation, and resisting overdevelopment. Buontempo, meanwhile, has been critical of the current leadership’s handling of affordable housing agreements and municipal finances, calling for a halt to apartment construction and opposing the use of eminent domain on private farmland.
Tobia Defeats Incumbent in Colts Neck
John Tobia emerged victorious in Tuesday’s Republican primary for the Colts Neck Township Committee, ousting incumbent Sue Fitzpatrick, according to unofficial results.
Although both candidates running for one open seat believe in open space preservation and responsible, affordable housing policies, the approval of Livana Colts Neck, a 360-unit apartment project, upset several residents and set the stage for early political debate.
According to unofficial results from the Monmouth County Clerk’s Office, Tobia received 1,176 votes or 59.76% of the ballots cast, while Fitzpatrick received 789 (40.09%). An additional three votes were cast for write-in candidates.
All eight voting districts reported with 2,429 ballots cast from among 5,489 registered Republican voters.
Tobia is now poised to advance to the general election in November. No Democratic candidates have filed to run yet, leaving Tobia potentially running unopposed in the fall.
In a Facebook post announcing the unofficial win, Tobia thanked the voters and allies for a “hard-fought race.”
“When I’m elected in November, I’ll set my sights on getting our fiscal house in order and tackling our greatest challenges in new and different ways. Yes, we can get Colts Neck back on track, together. And we will,” he said.
Governor’s Race: Ciattarelli, Sherrill Win Big
On the Republican side, in unofficial results as of press time, Raritan native and former state Assembly member Jack Ciattarelli secured a dominant victory in the primary with 62% of the vote, far outpacing his nearest rival, Bill Spadea, who won 28.5% of the vote. Other candidates in the race included Mario Kranjac, Justin Barbera and Jon Bramnick. Ciattarelli celebrated his victory Tuesday night at a gathering at Bell Works in Holmdel.
Democratic voters also delivered a clear verdict, with U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) winning the primary with 44% of the vote. She outperformed Steven Fulop, who came in second with 19.8% of the vote, as well as Steve Sweeney, Josh Gottheimer, Ras Baraka and Sean Spiller. In November, Sherill and Ciattarelli will face off in the race for governor.
Contested County, Legislative Races Decided
The Monmouth County Republican Committee secured decisive victories in the primary election against a new GOP slate, Monmouth County Conservative Republicans.
Incumbent Monmouth County Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon cruised to victory with 71% of the vote over challenger Danielle Bellomo.
In the race for county commissioner, incumbents Thomas A. Arnone and Nick DiRocco won with 42.5% and 36.9% of the vote, respectively, defeating challenger Mary Katie Kelliher.
The primary races for county sheriff were uncontested; incumbent Shaun Golden will run against Democratic challenger Michael Warren in November.
In a statement to The Two River Times, Golden, who chairs the Republican Committee, thanked voters for their support.
“From our record of strong fiscal responsibility to our beautiful parks and open space to our support for law enforcement and public safety, the voters recognized that our team of candidates was the best choice in this primary election to keep Monmouth County moving in the right direction. This resounding victory will be the foundation for our success in the November general election,” Golden said.
In the upcoming November election, Hanlon will face off against Democratic challenger Alison DeNoia, while Arnone and DiRocco will run against Democrats Vito Colasurdo and Jacquelyn Wenzel.
In the contested Republican primary for Assembly District 13, incumbents Gerry Scharfenberger and Vicky Flynn won. Scharfenberger led with 38.8% of the vote, while Flynn secured 33.5%. Newcomer Rich Castaldo missed being nominated, winning 27.3% of the vote.
In District 11, Republican candidates for state Assembly Andrew Wardell and Jessica Ford moved forward uncontested.
For Democrats, uncontested candidates in District 13, Jason Corley Sr. and Vaibhav Gorige, will move forward to challenge Flynn and Scharfenberger in November; in District 11, incumbent state Assembly members Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul will face Wardell and Ford in the fall.
The article originally appeared in the June 12 – 18, 2025 print edition of The Two River Times.
