By MADDY VITALE
Incumbent Third Ward Councilman Tony Wilson, challenged by Boardwalk businessman Jody Levchuk in an unprecedented vote-by-mail municipal election, is trailing by 10 votes as of Tuesday night.
Cape May County Clerk Rita Marie Fulginiti said of 1,108 votes tallied Tuesday, newcomer Levchuk had received 557 votes so far to Wilson’s 547.
“We are watching the Third Ward race, but at this point it is too close to call,” Fulginiti said in a phone interview shortly after the polls closed at 8 p.m.
She noted election officials gave priority to counting the Third Ward votes first, since it was the only Ocean City contested race.
Mail-in ballots had to be postmarked by Tuesday. However, votes may continue to come in and be counted over the next two days, she explained.
“Ocean City blazed a trail as the first all-mail election in Cape May County,” Fulginiti said. “Ocean City is a great and unique town, and this is a unique election.”
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the election campaigning shifted from knocking on doors to utilizing social media platforms, advertising and phone calls and text messages.
At about 8:30 p.m. Fulginiti said a total of 3,078 votes were counted so far between the five candidates for the four wards.
“These are the unofficial totals and we still won’t have the complete tally for the next couple of days,” she noted. “We are closing it down and posting to Cape May County Votes (website) and will wait for the mail tomorrow.”
Candidates who are running unopposed are incumbents First Ward Councilman Michael DeVlieger and Fourth Ward Councilman Bob Barr and newcomer Tom Rotondi, who is running for the Second Ward seat vacated in January by former Councilman Antwan McClellan, who was elected to the state Assembly.
As of the close of business Tuesday, Barr was the highest vote-getter, receiving 719 votes, with DeVlieger garnering 673 votes and Rotondi at 394 votes. However, Fulginiti reiterated that any ballots that come in within the next 48 hours still need to be counted and that these tallies were unofficial.
To view the complete tally of votes so far, visit www.capemaycountyvotes.com.
Levchuk, 43, who co-owns the Jilly’s stores on the Boardwalk, said that he was happy he was ahead, but will await the final results over the next couple of days before he celebrates.
“It has been a wonderful experience,” he said. “I love my community and I have really learned through campaigning that people are very comfortable with me getting into office.”
He was philosophical about the possibility that in a race that is too close to call, he may not win.
“I’m a businessman and know you don’t always win every time,” Levchuk said. “If I don’t get elected, it would be uncharacteristic of me not to try again, and if I win, I will be ready to work for my ward and the entire community.”
Wilson, 51, a lifelong resident of Ocean City, and owner of C. Leo Wilson Plumbing and Heating, is currently vice president of City Council.
He said since he first joined Council in 2011, he has done a lot with the city administration to improve infrastructure and preserve open space as well as deal with flood mitigation and beach replenishment.
Wilson, a father of two, said he hopes he could continue all of the good work he has started.
“It is a good feeling to be part of the incumbency. We have already done a lot to preserve open space,” he said in a phone interview. “We have a lot of other projects that we continue to work on. We have a record of success and I hope people recognize that and it springboards me to another term.”
