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Editor, the Asbury Park Sun:

On May 14, Asbury Park residents will go into the voting booth with the best of intentions. Some have declared they will split their votes between various tickets. But, in doing so, they could very well trigger unintended consequences that could prove disastrous for Asbury Park.

I’ve put a lot of thought into my vote.

I agree with the incumbent ticket, Forward Asbury Park, on some things; I disagree with them on others, but I do recognize that their hard work for the past 12 years has put Asbury Park on the right course — after decades of despair and blight. I know them because of their records, their list of accomplishments and vocal support (Dan Jacobson notwithstanding) from the city’s residents that lived through the dark times.

I like Amy Quinn. I really do. But, I feel that she and her ticket, One Asbury, have no chance of winning.

Unfortunately, they may peel off enough votes to hand the election over to the A-Team, a group of candidates whose campaign office was raided by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office just this weekend, a group of candidates whose ranks include people with serious criminal records.

So, what does that make One Asbury? It makes them spoilers, at best.

My main concern with splitting my vote between the two tickets is that, if I do that, the A-Team will slip in by attrition. We can’t let that happen.

That’s why I urge Asbury Park voters not to split their vote. For me, I support voting straight down the ballot line for the entire ticket — 1, 2, 3, 4, 5— Sue Henderson, John Loffredo, Kevin Sanders, Greg Hopson and Will Potter.

— Matt Philbin, Asbury Park

[This letter represents the opinion of its writer and is not representative of any opinion of the Asbury Park Sun staff. All readers are welcome to submit Letters to the Editor to news@asburyparksun.com for our consideration. For guidelines on letter-writing and submission, click here.]

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