- December 16, 2025
Republican sheriff candidate was registered Democrat in New Jersey.
John Pollinger, a retired New Jersey police officer who is now running for Flagler County sheriff, intends to qualify as a Republican despite questions about his party status. But based on state statute, his petitions could be in jeopardy.
State statute says that during the qualifying period in June, a candidate must swear that he has not been affiliated with another party in the past 365 days.
But Supervisor of Elections Kimberle Weeks was informed last week that Pollinger was still registered as a Democrat in New Jersey within the past year. That prompted Weeks to contact the state elections office, which advised her to inform Pollinger of the following options: He could qualify with no party affiliation, become a write-in candidate or decide not to qualify at all. Weeks’ role is one of record keeper; she does not have the authority to deny Pollinger a spot on the ballot. But she said she wanted to let him know last week, in case he wanted to gather petitions as an NPA.
The deadline for submitting petitions was Monday. Pollinger has already gathered the 651 petitions required as a Republican candidate, but he did not gather them as an NPA. Now, to qualify as an NPA, he would need to pay $4,810.12.
When he was 18, Pollinger registered as a Democrat in New Jersey so that he could vote for a family friend in a primary. He describes himself as “apolitical,” and so he never gave it much thought after that until registering as a Republican in 2009 in Florida, having been inspired by Ronald Reagan and Rudy Giuliani.
But on the form that he submitted to the elections office when he moved to Palm Coast, Pollinger left his previous address blank. Weeks said there was therefore no way for her to know that he needed his New Jersey voting rights canceled, and so he was technically registered in both places until, ultimately, he filled out the paperwork himself to have his voting registration removed in New Jersey. That was done, he said, to clear the air after members of the Republican Club in Flagler County accused him of being a “closet Democrat.”
Attorney Michael Chiumento said Pollinger intends to sign on the dotted line and qualify as a Republican. “If anyone wants to challenge him,” he said, “they have to file an action in court.”
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