Fire Captain Angelo DeMaio, Police Officer John Devlin, and Farmer Sam Mento Announce Candidacies for Democratic Freeholder Nominations
Fire Captain Angelo DeMaio, police officer John Devlin, and Hammonton farmer Sam Mento today announced their intent to seek the Democratic nominations for Atlantic County Freeholder At Large, Second District Freeholder, and Fifth District Freeholder on the steps of the Stillwater Building, where the Board of Freeholders meet.Atlantic County families need fresh ideas to meet the challenges of today's economic crisis, said DeMaio who is seeking the Freeholder At Large nomination. As a career fireman, I have never had the luxury of sitting back and seeing what happens during a crisis. When confronted with a problem, I have to come up with a plan and tackle it head-on and that's what I intend to do as your next Freeholder. I have built my life around service to my community and my country, said Devlin, who served in the United States Marine Corps and is seeking the Second District Freeholder nomination. I am committed to working on behalf of Atlantic County's hard working families, who deserve representatives who put forth real solutions for community problems, not just sound bytes to win political points. I have spent my life working as a union carpenter and farmer, not as a career politician, said Mento, a blueberry farmer in Hammonton. I want to represent residents in the western part of the county, because I am fed up with the same tired lines of how wonderful everything is. Ask the farmers and business owners in Hammonton and Buena, and the working families in Mullica and Egg Harbor City if they feel they are getting the most out of their county government. DeMaio has 17 years of experience in the Atlantic City Fire Department and has worked his way up to the position of Captain in Training and Special Operations. He is also the President of the Atlantic CityProfessional Fire Fighters Union Local 198, which is part of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), AFL-CIO and the local Atlantic and Cape May Central Labor Council. A resident of Atlantic City, Angelo is a former casino dealer and table games supervisor. He is also the co-chair and coordinator of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Atlantic City Firefighters' Fill the Boot Drive, which raises money for area MDA children, and the Atlantic City Firefighters Toys for Children program. A six-year officer of the Atlantic City Police Department, Devlin is also a School Board Member in Atlantic City, a fifteen-year member of the Teamsters Union Local 331, and a shop steward for the PBA Local 24. Married with two children, Devlin coaches youth wrestling and volunteers in his children's school. Mento is a lifelong resident of Hammonton, who has worked with his father in the family's floor covering business and been a 15-year union carpenter. Mento recently purchased a blueberry farm in Hammonton and is now an Executive Board Member of the Atlantic County Board of Agriculture. A football coach over the years, Mento also belongs to the Lions Club, Free Mason Lodge, Sons of Italy and Never There Sportsmen's Club. Sam is a former President of the Hammonton Democratic Club. Mento is married with two children. While the Republican dominated Freeholder Board continues to trumpet how wonderful things are in Atlantic County, the various community leaders joined with us today and the people that we speak with feel differently, said DeMaio. Our representatives should never be sitting back, accepting the status quo. Atlantic County deserves leaders who will always be trying to make our county cleaner, safer, efficient and more affordable.As a highly trained public safety veteran, I bring a lot of energy and focus to everything I do, said Devlin. Captain DeMaio, Sam Mento and I are committed to putting our energies into turning our current economic crisis into opportunity.I am proud to be part of this strong, energetic freeholder ticket, said Mento. I believe we will provide a breath of fresh air for Atlantic County's hard working residents. DeMaio, Devlin, and Mento's plan for helping struggling Atlantic County families includes: -Tightening spending in Atlantic County's nearly $200 million budget; -Promoting and diversifying the regional economy by assisting small businesses and attracting new industries; and -Utilizing State and federal economic stimulus funds to improve our transportation infrastructure to meet the county's growing residential and commercial demands. DeMaio, Devlin, and Mento will participate in the Atlantic County Democratic Party's Annual Convention on Sunday, March 22nd, where they will seek their party's nomination for the three freeholder positions.The Freeholder At Large position represents all 23 municipalities in Atlantic County. The Second Freeholder District consists of Atlantic City's Fifth and Sixth Wards, Ventnor, Margate, Longport, Somers Point, and a small portion of Egg Harbor Township. The Fifth Freeholder District includes Buena Borough, Buena Vista Township, Corbin City, Egg Harbor City, Estell Manor, Folsom, parts of Hamilton Township, Hammonton, Mullica Township, and Weymouth.
-- Edited by Admin on Thursday 19th of March 2009 07:35:23 PM
Dear Reader and Friends of the Hammonton Democratic Club:
Let me be one of the first to congratulate Hammonton's Favorite Son and the next 5th District Freeholder, Sam Mento. Sam, along with Angelo Demaio and John Devlin, can count on 100% support of the Hammonton Democratic Club. They are the individuals who will make Atlantic County accountable to the people not the special interests.
This team provides the right combination of experience in government, business and labor to bring the economic prosperity to the county. I can say from personal experience that Sam has proven himself an innovative leader who builds consensus as he moves people and organizations forward towards a common goal. His experience as head of the Hammonton Democrats, as a farmer and as a union carpenter will ensure that all voices are heard on the freeholder board.
So please join me as we elect Sam, Angelo and John. Let's make Atlantic County Government as good as its people.
Congratulations to the Democrats on wasting an oppurtunity. Sam Mento should have run for town council not for Freeholder. How stupid are you Democrats? Jim Curcio is the Freeholder Chairman from Hammonton and you put somebody up against him? You should try to win 1 council seat. You people deserve to never win another election in Hammonton for 50 years.
I think it is great that Mento is running for Freeholder. Jim has been there 15 years! That is a career not a political term. Sam and the new Democrats will bring fresh ideas and a renewed life for our side of the county. When the Democrats take back the county this year, Sam Mento is the right person to reunite our town with the county.
I think it is great that Mento is running for Freeholder. Jim has been there 15 years! That is a career not a political term. Sam and the new Democrats will bring fresh ideas and a renewed life for our side of the county. When the Democrats take back the county this year, Sam Mento is the right person to reunite our town with the county.
I guess if you don't want people to hold office for 15 years you are against Jimmy Bertino also, yes?
I think it is great that Mento is running for Freeholder. Jim has been there 15 years! That is a career not a political term. Sam and the new Democrats will bring fresh ideas and a renewed life for our side of the county. When the Democrats take back the county this year, Sam Mento is the right person to reunite our town with the county.
I guess if you don't want people to hold office for 15 years you are against Jimmy Bertino also, yes?
Best wishes Sam. We all have had enough of the Curcio family eating from the public. What did curcio do for the hospital nothing ...once again a family affair. What has Curcio done for hammonton? what did Curcio do to so many good people in the Republican Club?...just screwed them over for the firsters....... in general what has Curcio done other than take a salary and benefits..plus hold jobs in towns where hes' freeloader...Best of luck Sam...when you get elected ...even if you do nothing it will be more than Curcio...you will at least be seen.........
Congratulations to the Democrats on wasting an oppurtunity. Sam Mento should have run for town council not for Freeholder. How stupid are you Democrats? Jim Curcio is the Freeholder Chairman from Hammonton and you put somebody up against him? You should try to win 1 council seat. You people deserve to never win another election in Hammonton for 50 years.
You have a mouth full of sour grapes..is that why the Curcios' are so upset? poor little jimmie could get beat this time.....good luck Dems...the local GOP is now in the crapperthanks to the Curcios'......................
Congratulations to the Democrats on wasting an oppurtunity. Sam Mento should have run for town council not for Freeholder. How stupid are you Democrats? Jim Curcio is the Freeholder Chairman from Hammonton and you put somebody up against him? You should try to win 1 council seat. You people deserve to never win another election in Hammonton for 50 years.
Wasted opportunity? Sam is running for a higher office. Sam is one of many young Democrats in the Democratic club. Jim Curcio does not have a lock on anything especially in Hammonton. Good luck Sam, your a great leader and when elected people will truly see why Hammonton should have voted Democrat instead of voting continuously blindly voting Republican.
I trust Jim Curcio as the chairman of the Atlantic County Freeholder Board and overseeing the Atlantic County budget. Why should we give up our leadership position on the GOP freeholder board?
Sam Mento is a much better candidate than the other 2 democratic candidates. Do people really want an Atlantic City fireman and Atlantic City policeman being in charge of the Atlantic County budget? I would fear the budget would increase dramatically and are county taxes will skyrocket. We cannot afford to have yes man rollover on tax increases.
The county budget is the only budget that is reasonable compared to state budget and the federal budget. I am not supportive of having all union labor bosses run taxpayer budgets ..........TRUST me they will go thru the roof!!!!!
Atlantic City politicans are not known for being fiscally conservative, but are known for being corrupt and creating patronage no show jobs.
The only reason Jim Curcio was made chairman of the board is because the Republicans know he has done nothing and is the invisible man. Even though they might not be able to get him to do anything at least they might get him 30 seconds of visibility in this position.
The county budget has been stable only because of the ratable growth in Atlantic City and Egg Harbor Twp. Now that that has slowed down, the county had to raise taxes this year. We need Sam Mento on the freeholder board to spur growth in our part of the county which will help keep the taxes stable at both the county and local level. We need to make the rest of the county aware that there are towns here on the western end of the county. Curcio has not been able to do that, Sam Mento is just what we need.
And as for the other two candidates, you need to listen to what they have to say instead of assigning a stereotype to them. Many good people have been ruined by stereotypes, don't write them off before you know what they stand for.
Just like a member of the Curcio-First Party to attack firemen and police officers as being corrupt. I guess Curcio thinks that those firemen that ran into the world trade center on 9/11 were all corrupt.
I guess the invisible man cannot comprehend the idea of someone getting a paycheck from the gov't for actually doing something. He has gotten pay and benefits for the past 15 years for doing nothing.
No Atlantic City fireman or Atlantic City policeman can do this job but a Hammonton union carpenter and farmer can? Explain your thoughts. Why is one qualified and the other not?
Who said fireman and police are corrupt? I just do not think it would be good to have them sit on a board where they can vote raises for themselves. I think Sam Mento is much better candidate then either candidate from Atlantic City. Personally, I think Jim Curcio, as chairman, will do a better job keeping the county budget under control then the Democrats. I base this on what I see in the state of New Jersey and what I know happens in Camden County.
I don't blame you if you support Sam Mento, he comes from a great family. The bitter North Jersey style of attacking a person does not sit well with me.
The Atlantic County Freeholder Board does not have anything to do with the salaries in Atlantic City, so you have nothing to worry about. Don't make uninformed judgements about people who are running for office. You were ready to write them off because you misunderstood their roles in government. Many good and qualified candidates have lost due to misconceptions such as yours. Sometimes the opposition uses these misconceptions to their benefit, and some newspapers spread misconceptions to further their own agendas. We see that right here in Hammonton weekly.
-- Edited by Admin on Monday 23rd of March 2009 06:52:22 AM
The Atlantic County Freeholder Board does not have anything to do with the salaries in Atlantic City, so you have nothing to worry about. Don't make uninformed judgements about people who are running for office. You were ready to write them off because you misunderstood their roles in government. Many good and qualified candidates have lost due to misconceptions such as yours. Sometimes the opposition uses these misconceptions to their benefit, and some newspapers spread misconceptions to further their own agendas. We see that right here in Hammonton weekly.
-- Edited by Admin on Monday 23rd of March 2009 06:52:22 AM
Certain papers like to dictate who should run for office instead of letting the people decide.
Hey bitter North Jersey? Since I moved here I have been treated to horrible political battles. People are people all over, get a grip. Let us have a political discourse, tell the people running what you want done, don't waste your voice attacking people who are willing to run. Find out who will get the job done and vote.
