Page:History of West Hoboken NJ.djvu/61

 CHAPTER XI.

Latter Municipal Affairs.

As stated before, the township became a town in 1884. While it was governed under the township laws it had three township committeemen until the year 1868, and after this latter year it had five councilmen to govern it, who were elected at large, no ward or district lines being drawn. This method was in force until the year 1891, when the town adopted the special charter for towns, which was passed at the instance of West Hoboken. This charter provided for the election of a councilman-at-large and the establishment of not less than three wards, which are represented by two councilmen, making a board of council, consisting of seven members. Under this charter Mr. Charles J. Chandless was elected the first councilman-at-large.

In politics the town in its early history was non-partisan, that is, its citizens were elected to office in the majority of cases regardless of their politics. This state of affairs continued until the adoption of the last charter. When the ward lines were established it resulted in political clubs being formed and the injecting of party politics in the spring elections.

At the first election, under the present charter, the Democratic party swept the town, and with the exception of one year (1894), they have continued in power since that time. In the latter year an Independent ticket was placed in the field by the Municipal Club, an organization composed of independent citizens, and after a hot campaign the entire independent ticket was declared elected. In the spring of 1893, Mr. Benj. Day was the candidate for councilman-at-large on the municipal ticket, and Mr. Chas. J. Chandless (who had already served two terms), was the Democratic candidate. After the Board of Canvassers had declared Mr. Day elected, Mr. Chandless contested the election on the ground that several marked ballots were counted for Mr. Day. Ex-Judge Lippincott decided the case in favor of Mr. Day, but Mr. Chandless's attorneys immediately appealed the case, and the higher court reversed Lippincott's decision, and declared Mr. Chandless elected councilman-at-large. But there were four councilmen in the board who were elected by the municipals, as follows:—Messrs. B. Fitzgerald, Geo. F. McEwan, Chas. Solyum and Jacob Leuly. This board started out as reformers generally do, and, although their