Galloway Councilman Maldonado Recall Effort Falls Short

Here is the full public statement from Galloway Township Councilman Robert Maldonado following a failed attempt to remove him from office, by the recall process.

Maldonado was the deciding vote to take away the office of Galloway Township Mayor from Tony Coppola.

"When I was elected to Galloway Township Council, I took an oath to serve all of its residents. Earlier this year, I was verbally and emotionally attacked for doing just that. A small group of misguided individuals, led by the Galloway Republican League, tried to remove me from office when I decided it was more important to do what is right than to do what they ordered me to do. When I put politics aside and made a decision I believed was best for the community, that is when I saw the truly dirty side of politics. Lies about me were fabricated in an attempt to tarnish my reputation. My family and I were attacked both verbally and through social media. My being a veteran, after having served our country for over 20 years, was repeatedly brought into question. I endured racial slurs as I would walk into Council meetings and proceeded to hear insult after insult directed at me by these same individuals. All in an effort to try and make me resign from my position, while at the same time leading a recall effort to try and have me removed. All of this because I didn’t do what 'they' wanted me to do.

"Through my faith in God, through the love of my family, and through the outpouring of support from so many people in this community, I am happy to report that the recall effort has officially failed. Just because these few individuals were loud and influential, they did not speak for all of our residents. Many of my neighbors and fellow residents have reached out to me to show their love and support, and to tell me how sick they are of the politics they have seen. Politics so dirty that my life and reputation was worth destroying for the sake of power and political payouts. In these times of uncertainty, we need less politics and more love and support for each other. I am thankful that this chapter is over, and I pray that we can all move forward. Thank you again to all of those who supported me."