Collingswood, New Jersey: Beginner’s Municipal Voter Guide 2025
A concise overview of a complex landscape, written for new residents who want to participate meaningfully on May 13th.
Welcome! As a journalist and a new resident trying to understand some of the issues related to the upcoming municipal election here in Collingswood, this guide hopefully offers a helpful overview based on my personal research. It outlines key dates, explains why the election matters, and details the structure of our Board of Commissioners. I’ve also highlighted three “Things Worth Knowing” that stood out to me. Finally, you’ll find a summary of four key issues and the stances of the major slates on each.
Table of Contents Key Dates | Background | Government Basics | Three Things Worth Knowing | The Candidates | Key Municipal Issues | The Candidates & The Major Issues
Key Dates
- The deadline to register to vote in this election (April 22) has passed.
- The deadline to apply for a Mail-In Ballot by Mail (May 6) has passed)
- Early Voting (Friday to Sunday, May 9–11) has passed (@ 30 Collings Ave.)
- Deadline for In-Person Mail-In Ballot Applications (Monday, May 12) has passed
- TODAY! Tuesday, May 13 — Election Day! Polls open from 6am to 8pm (Find your polling place here — just type in your address)
Background
Following a 2017 uncontested election and a 2021 mid-pandemic vote, mayor and commissioner Jim Maley is seeking his 10th consecutive term, leading a slate with incumbent Morgan Robinson and newcomer and former 2024 Collingswood School Board candidate, Becky Seig. The challengers include a three-person Collingswood Forward ticket, with Dr. Amy Henderson Riley, Daniela Solano-Ward and Meghan Adamoli. There is also a seventh individual candidate, longtime resident Stuart Slattery. While Collingswood has enjoyed a recent period of growth, attracting new residents, businesses, and cultural expansion, there are also serious financial issues including school budget shortfalls, failed bond measures, a reassessment, and tax hikes, that are key campaign concerns, impacting students, families, seniors and businesses.
Government Basics
- Three-person Board of Commissioners are elected at-large and each serves concurrent four year terms
- “At-large” simply means the Commissioners represent everyone in the town, and everyone is allowed to vote
- Commissioners act as department heads:
- Public Affairs and Public Safety
- Public Works, Parks & Public Property
- Revenue, Finance & Sustainability
4. Three candidates often run together as a “ticket”
5. Voters select up to three candidates and the top 3 vote-getters win
6. The mayor is self-determined by the Commissioners
7. Elections are non-partisan and there are currently no term or age limits
Three Things Worth Knowing
1️⃣ Turnout is low. Margins are small.
Since 2013, municipal election turnout has been between 14% to 19% of registered voters. During the same time period, local Board of Education election turnout has been between 17% and 28%. Collingswood saw an even higher turnout for the 2024 School Bond Referendum, with 35% of registered voters weighing in.
In that 2024 School Bond Referendum, more residents voted “No” than voted for a single candidate in the 2021 municipal election (2,757 versus 2,267 votes).
In all types of local elections, you also see slim margins of victory. In 2024, a local Board of Education candidate won by just 179 votes. The margin of victory in the 2013 municipal election was just 141 votes. This means that additional turnout from just a few blocks could decide future elections.
2️⃣ Commissioners have a lot of power.
The size and structure of our Board of Commissioners concentrates considerable responsibility and oversight. Unlike other municipalities with larger Boards, or having some separation of power between a mayor and city council, our three Commissioners simultaneously legislate and execute policy. They write local ordinances and laws and also implement and enforce them via municipal departments, many headed by the Board’s appointees. This dual legislative and executive role is powerful.
3️⃣ “At odds” NJ state-level laws incentivize fiscal opportunism at the municipal level
A key inconsistency in New Jersey’s state-local framework is evident in school funding. While the state allows Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOTs) to drive the Borough’s economic development plans, its own funding formula fails to fully recognize the PILOTs’ tangible impact on local tax revenue. (More details about the funding formula at BridgeTheGapColls.com.)
This disconnect is further emphasized by the New Jersey Department of Education’s recent introduction of the Tax Levy Incentive Program (TLIP). This initiative permits Collingswood schools to implement significant property tax increases, without requiring a vote, to achieve critical full school funding, however directly affecting homeowners. (More details about TLIP at NJPen.com — subscription required.)
The Candidates
Key Municipal Issues
A few top issues that have emerged in this election cycle. Here’s a brief overview of the impact and importance of these four municipal areas.
The Candidates & The Major Issues
All of the candidates have acknowledged and signaled an investment in addressing these major issues, however their proposed solutions differ.
Their approaches sometimes reflect their professional backgrounds, signaling how they might be accustomed to creatively tackling challenges or pursuing opportunities at work. Below is a summary of the broad positions the major slates have taken in their public statements, interviews, and/or past actions in office.
Team Collingswood (Website)
This slate features two incumbents and is running on a record of their accomplishments and the promise of fresh perspectives. They highlight community pride, a willingness to work together to benefit the town and its youth, and a vision of even better times ahead.
Real Estate & Re/Development & Taxes—Leveraging significant professional experience in real estate development and entrepreneurship — including various land deals and their 2021 establishment of a trash collection department — the incumbents say they will prioritize investments in sustainability and green infrastructure as one of their top 10 goals for the next four years. Under current leadership, Collingswood has maintained stable taxes, partly achieved through the Board of Commissioner’s ability to negotiate and approve Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreements with developers. PILOTs spur economic development, and also direct revenue from the local tax base, to the Borough.
Schools — The incumbents’ tenure has coincided with a strained relationship with the Board of Education, exacerbated by the pandemic, state funding gaps, and significant school budget deficits leading to painful layoffs and challenging public meetings. The ongoing “joint agreement” discussions between the Borough and the BOE offer a more detailed perspective, and Team Collingswood believes that their proposed redevelopment projects will eventually provide benefits to the schools, including potential funding for shared recreational facilities.
Public Safety — The incumbents have prioritized sizable public safety investments, including new crosswalks and calming bump outs, as well as building the multi-million dollar joint police and fire building in 2020. The latter included ending the Borough’s 128-year relationship with the volunteer fire company and establishing a fully paid fire department.
Additional Issues
Mental Health & Community Health — Team Collingswood aims to expand mental and community health resources, particularly for at-risk residents. They would also like to strengthen the Board of Health to improve outreach, address concerns, and connect residents with vital services.
Improving Public Spaces — The team plans to expand recreation opportunities, murals and public art, and community gardens. The draft “Plan to Play” Recreation Master Plan would guide improvements.
Collingswood Forward (Website)
This slate of challengers offers a vision centered on collaboration, transparency, and modernization. Their approach highlights community engagement, digital innovation, and celebrating local achievements.
Real Estate & Re/Development & Taxes — Collingswood Forward’s tax platform critiques the current PILOT program usage and calls for budget reviews to reallocate funds. The team would also aim to increase affordable housing by meeting state mandates and exploring policies like rent control and inclusionary zoning. They also would like to expand and diversify housing options by reviewing and updating local planning and zoning ordinances to attract more diverse development. They propose boosting small business development by reducing bureaucratic hurdles and actively seeking more grants.
Schools — For schools, their focus is on increasing funding through shared services and events revenue, and repairing the strained relationship with the Board of Education. They plan to advocate for the schools’ elected officials’ roles, and push for solutions at the county, state, and regional levels for needed resources.
Public Safety — The ticket’s platform focuses on essential improvements to roads and the sewer system. Additionally, they’re committing to enacting the Collingswood and Haddon Township Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, “Connect 2020”, and aligning with New Jersey’s Target Zero Commission’s vision of zero road fatalities.
Additional Issues
Digitization — The slate seeks to cut costly mailers, switch to primarily digital communication with an opt-in paper version, implement online bill pay and explore online bidding for Borough services.
Transparency — They pledge to create open online nomination processes for Borough boards, prioritize diverse appointments reflecting the community, pursue term limits for volunteers and Commissioners and seek to expand the size of the Board of Commissioners from three to five.
Collaborate Regionally — They’d like to work more actively with surrounding municipalities on county-wide initiatives, support the Mayor’s Association, and advocate for shared services.
For more information about the candidates stances on the issues, please watch NJ Pen and The Retrospect’s “Meet the Candidates Election Forum”. It is free to stream on the YouTube accounts of both NJ Pen and The Retrospect.
Also see two companion posts:
I’ll try to post additional details closer to the election. If any of the details below stand out as something you’d love to know more about, leave a comment to let me know.
- List of all of the departments and department heads overseen by each Commissioner
- Bonus (time willing): An interactive property tax calculator
Also if there are any citizen journalists, or journalists who want to work together to make election information more accessible to new residents, please reach out as well. I’d love to collaborate.
Thanks for reading, happy voting.
