Poll Question: What Issues Will Dominate The 2011 Township Committee Race?

The clock is ticking. In less than one month, Cranford voters will be asked to head to the polls and cast their votes for the two available seats on the Township Committee.

This year's race will see Mayor Dan Aschenbach and fellow Democrat Tom Hannen face opposition from former candidate Andis Kalnins and his Republican running mate Lisa Adubato Nesi.

Kalnins is making his second bid for Township Committee, having finished third in a four-way race in 2010. He is a member of the Cranford Zoning Board of Adjustment. This is Adubato Nesi’s first race for a seat on the governing body. The local attorney is a member of the school advisory board at St. Michael’s School and has been active in a variety of township civic affairs.

Aschenbach, a veteran of over a quarter century in Cranford politics, is seeking election to his seventh non-consecutive term on the Township Committee. His running mate served four terms on the Winfield Township Committee in the 1970s and 1980s. Hannen was also the mayor of Winfield for a number of years.

With some residents still coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, issues involving flooding and mitigation will likely be a campaign issue. The recent change from property tax-based sewer bills to user-based fees may also arise. And there's always the Birchwood property and debate over how to handle the builder's remedy lawsuit that the town is facing.

In the poll below, patch is asking residents what will be on their minds as they step inside the voting booth on Nov. 8.