Florance-Lynch enters race for Darling freeholder seat

Pequannock Councilwoman Melissa Florance-Lynch today formally entered the race for Morris County Freeholder, touting her record as a fiscal conservative and her work creating opportunities for shared services.

“I’m proud to say that I’ve balanced the need for supporting community programs and resources for residents, while holding the municipal tax rate to an increase of less than three-quarters of one percent on my nine-year watch,” Florance-Lynch said.  “That’s the kind of fiscal conservatism I will bring to the Morris County Board.”

Florance-Lynch says she was worked extensively with federal, state and municipal officials to mitigate the impact of flooding in her hometown and takes credit for attracting new businesses to Pequannock.

Florance-Lynch joins Chatham Township Mayor Tayfun Selen, Morristown Councilwoman Alison Deeb, and former Pompton Lakes Councilman Christian Barranco in the race to succeed Heather Darling.

Darling is expected to resign in two weeks to take office as the Morris County Surrogate.

That will trigger a special election convention next month to fill the remaining year of her term of the Board of Freeholders.

The race for Darling’s seat was upended on Thursday after Attorney General Gurbir Grewal charged one of the candidates, former freeholder John Cesaro, with accepting a bribe from a cooperating witness, attorney Matthew O’Donnell.

Cesaro, who had been seeking a return to the freeholder seat he lost in the 2018 Republican primary, has not yet announced if he will continue his campaign.

Another former freeholder, David Scapicchio, had said over the summer that he would seek Darling’s seat if she won the general election.  Since then, he has withdrawn for family reasons.