Hamilton school board candidate Casale to boycott another forum
HAMILTON >> Known for boycotting forums, Hamilton school board candidate Girard Casale confirmed he will be a no-show at next week’s much-anticipated Meet the Candidates event.
“I am not going, because I am not going to get along with what is happening,” Casale said Wednesday in an interview “I am very, very upset. I don’t even know what to say how I see Hamilton school board and what is taking place. I need to get on that board to change things and bring it back to the senses where we can get things done.”
The Hamilton Township Education Association is hosting a candidates’ forum next Tuesday, Oct. 30, at the Ancient Order of Hibernians club off Kuser Road. HTEA has invited all nine candidates to attend the primetime event, which will give the public a grand opportunity to learn more about the candidates as the Nov. 6 election approaches.
Incumbent school board members Richard Kanka and Susan Ferrara are running for re-election this year. Other candidates running include Sherry Morency, Richard Crockett, Cynthia Simon, Angelo Hall, Janna Sheiman and Chandler Georgiou.
Morency, Crockett and Simon are running together on a slate. Their campaign manager, David Henderson, on Tuesday suggested his team of candidates were planning to attend the HTEA forum. Simon told The Trentonian she will be at the event, which runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. next Tuesday at the Hibernian Club.
Morency and Crockett have a well-documented history of sharing inflammatory content on social media, sparking a brouhaha over race and racism in this 40-square-mile township. Voters should evaluate where candidates stand on the issues and assess their character, Henderson said Tuesday.
“This is America,” he said. “When somebody is running for political office, they are asking you to put your trust in them.”
Henderson said his slate of candidates should be judged on character and for where they stand on the issues, saying anyone interested in the school board race should “listen to all the negative stuff and character assassination” and “find out if it’s true.”
Most of the 2018 Hamilton school board candidates did not attend the Oct. 4 forum at Saint Phillips Baptist Church or the Oct. 15 meet and greet hosted by the Hamilton Township Community Supporting Education Facebook group. The Oct. 30 forum hosted by the teachers union has the potential to attract a majority of the candidates and a sizable audience, but Casale will not be there.
“I didn’t do anything all campaign season,” he said. “If they want positive change and they want somebody who wants to do something and get things done and get Hamilton back on track you vote for me.”
Casale ran unsuccessfully for Hamilton school board in 2016 and 2017 but hopes his third time is the charm.
“This is the third time,” he said. “If they don’t want me, this is it.”
At least one new member will be elected to the Hamilton Township Board of Education this year, because incumbent Michelle Episcopo is not seeking reelection to a second term. The three candidates who receive the most votes, the second most votes and the third most votes will emerge victorious and take office in January 2019 as one of the nine Board of Education members.
The Ancient Order of Hibernians club is located at 2419 Kuser Road in Hamilton Township.