PARSIPPANY — In a dramatic turn of events following one of the closest elections in Parsippany history, Mayor James R. Barberio has filed a formal legal challenge contesting the results of the November 4 mayoral race.
The verified complaint, filed Friday at 4:14 p.m., in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Morris County, alleges serious irregularities in the vote-by-mail process that Barberio claims may have altered the election’s outcome. Democrat Pulkit Desai was certified the winner by the Morris County Board of Canvassers on Monday, November 17, edging out Barberio by just 80 votes.
“I am deeply concerned that the mayoral race in Parsippany may have been improperly certified. The problem relates to vote-by-mail ballots. According to county records, as reported on the Morris County Board of Elections website 3,198 vote-by-mail ballots were tallied on election night,” said John M. Carbone, Esq.
This is the third attempt since November 4 to overturn the results certified by the Morris County Board of Canvassers.
According to the complaint, official county records show a discrepancy of 224 vote-by-mail ballots—with 3,789 votes counted, but only 3,565 confirmed as received by the November 10 deadline.
Barberio’s filing details alleged violations of multiple provisions under New Jersey election law, citing “illegal votes received or legal votes rejected,” and “errors by the Morris County Board of Canvassers in counting the votes and declaring the result.”
“The margin is razor-thin,” the complaint reads. “Documented irregularities surpass 700 votes—nearly ten times the certified margin of victory.”
Barberio, the Republican nominee, is seeking judicial review of hundreds of ballots, including overvotes, undervotes, and late-arriving mail ballots. The suit also names as respondents the Morris County Clerk, Board of Elections, Superintendent of Elections, and the Parsippany Municipal Clerk.
The court has not scheduled a hearing as of press time. If the results are overturned, it could prompt either a recount or a potential re-election.
Barberio led Desai by 211 votes, 9,555 to 9,339. But provisional and vote-by-mail ballots counted by the Morris County Board of Elections gave Desai a lead of 9,976 to 9,898, a margin of 50.5% to 49.65%.
Democrats also picked up two council seats, with Matt Kavanaugh and Diya Patel easily defeating Republican incumbent Frank Neglia and his running mate, Jigar Shah. That splits the township council, 3-2.
This is a developing story. Parsippany Focus will provide updates as more information becomes available.
