With the city clerk certifying that he has the necessary number of nominating petitions to run, Leonard Kantor becomes the last of three candidates seeking the office of the mayor.
Kantor is challenging incumbent Mayor Mark Smith and state Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone in the May 11 election. Kantor, a resident of the 1st Ward, declined an offer to run on the Chiappone ticket in the 1st Ward, saying that he felt he would be most effective as mayor.
“I’m the only candidate who is stating the correct facts,” Kantor said.
“I’m the only candidate who is stating the correct facts.” – Leonard Kantor
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A self-declared fiscal watchdog, Kantor has routinely criticized city operations, grilling city officials as to why they did things, how much things cost, and whether other ways of doing things might benefit the taxpayers more. He is particularly concerned about the extent of debt the city had acquired over the last decade and its inability to pay it down.
A lifelong resident of Bayonne, Kantor attended local schools, entering the United States Air Force after his graduation from Bayonne High School. He served from 1951 to 1953 and volunteered to serve in the Korean War.
A security specialist at Port Newark for the last 24 years, Kantor is a retired Bayonne police officer who served from 1961 to 1980.
“I’m running because I don’t think anybody else can do the job,” he said.
Kantor has run for mayor as well as City Council, and once even faced off against Chiappone for a City Council seat.
“But I’ve always lost,” he said. “I think this time I can win.”
Kantor said taxes are too high and the burden of paying off the city’s bills falls on senior citizens and others who can least afford to pay increasing taxes.
“Where does it stop?” he said.
He has been a strong advocate for developing the former Military Ocean Terminal as a commercial district.
“I’ve been saying that for years, and only recently have people come around to my way of thinking,” he said. “But it has to be done right.”
Kantor said he has no confidence that the current administration, under Mayor Smith, will be able to turn things around.
“They’re the same people who got us into this mess. How are they going to get us out of it?” he asked.
Kantor is also critical of the current reorganization of municipal government.
“They (the administration) are just moving pieces around,” he said. “But the payroll’s still too high.”
Field of candidates shrinks
Several candidates were disqualified from the May 11 mayor/council elections for not meeting the basic qualifications after the city clerk examined their nominating petitions last week.
As a result, the city clerk released its official list of qualified candidates this week, which includes Kantor, Chiappone, and Smith for mayor;
Thomas J. Bragen, William J. Birtwistle, Maria Karczewski, John Budnik, Denis F. Wilbeck, Mary Jane Desmond, Terrence P. Ruane, and Debra Czerwienski seeking at-large council seats;
In the 1st Ward, John R. Cupo, Thomas J. Cotter, Raphael J. Massarelli, and Agnes Gillespie are seeking the seat vacated by outgoing Councilman Ted Connolly.
In the 2nd Ward, Salvatore Gullace, Ramon O. Veloz, Joseph Hurley and John Butchko are seeking to fill the seat being vacated by outgoing Councilman John Halecky.
In the 3rd Ward, Incumbent Councilman Gary La Pelusa is being challenged by Deborah Noble and Raymond Greaves. – ADS