Mass resignations in Englishtown, NJ spurred by 'fear' of mayor

🚨 4 members resign from small New Jersey town's council

🚨 One said she feared for her well-being

🚨 On Friday, the mayor will hold a town hall

ENGLISHTOWN — More than half of Englishtown's elected officials have resigned in protest of a mayor they say is consolidating power and demanding only "yes men" — and who appointed a convicted killer and mob rat to the governing body.

Only one elected councilman remains after an uncharacteristically dramatic time for the small town in Monmouth County.

The rest have either resigned or are appointees of Republican Mayor Daniel Francisco — as is the case with Councilman John Alite, a former hitman with at least six corpses to his name who spent years in prison after snitching on the mob.

Mysterious legal issue

Francisco told New Jersey 101.5 that he asked the first two members of the council to resign after a "local incident" that he couldn't comment on due to a "legal issue."

Englishtown (Borough of Englishtown via Instagram)

But former Councilman William Lewis said he has no idea what that legal issue is, or what specific incident the mayor is talking about.

They had a falling out after they disagreed about ambitions for building up the town that takes up only a half square mile, according to Lewis.

'He's a little unhinged.'

Hostile environment in Englishtown

Lewis's wife, one of the council members who resigned in protest, said in a statement that the mayor has contributed to a "hostile" atmosphere at township meetings.

She said Francisco rarely spoke to her about council matters, instead choosing to relay messages through her husband.

"I feel that my voice has not been heard or respected due to his misogynistic conduct, and this behavior has influenced other council members, residents, and spectators — leading to confrontations during meetings... and I fear for my own well-being and that of my children," Meaghan Lewis said.

William Lewis and Francisco have been close friends since high school; Lewis was in the mayor's wedding. But Lewis said his childhood friend has changed since getting into politics, focusing more on theatrics and getting headlines.

Francisco said the resignations may have been a coordinated attempt to undermine him, but Lewis said that's not the case.

"He's a little unhinged," Lewis said.

William Sabin was the other councilman who resigned in protest.

In a statement, Sabin said Francisco — who ran for Congress in 2022 to unseat U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J. 4th District, but dropped out of the primary for a failed run for Monmouth County commissioner — was chasing political ambitions.

According to Sabin, the mayor said he needed "yes men" instead of councilmen.

"Continuing in this role under these circumstances would compromise my integrity, and I refuse to be complicit in a system that disregards the principles of fair and accountable governance. I cannot and will not serve as a 'yes man' to the mayor, nor will I allow my continued presence to imply otherwise," Sabin said.

Sabin's wife, Kimberly Sabin, has also resigned from her position as chair of the Planning and Zoning Board.

Meeting for residents to share their concerns

It's been a tumultuous time recently for Englishtown, which saw its police chief arrested on shoplifting charges last year.

NJ towns that need to build the most affordable housing

These 33 municipalities have the greatest number of affordable housing units that should be built, according to calculations by the Department of Community Affairs.

The "present need" refers to existing but deficient housing occupied by low- and moderate-income households. "Prospective need" refers to the housing that would have to be built in the next 10 years to accommodate the estimated growth of low- and moderate-income households. The state used a formula that considers a municipality's income and land capacity.

The current housing and population counts are from the 2020 Census.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5