Will Mennen

Hunterson County Sheriff Deborah Tout, a Republican in office since January 2008, is being pushed to resign by at the all-Republican Hunterdon County Board of Freeholders.

After a year of feuding with the freeholder board over budget issues and hiring practices, Hunterdon County Sheriff Deborah Trout thought she was starting to make progress.

She had met with Freeholder Will Mennen one-on-one several times, and he was helping her iron out the differences. So it came as a surprise to her and the rest of the board two weeks ago when Freeholder George Melick introduced a resolution calling on Trout, who is only one year into her first term, to resign.

"Things are settling down, everyone is happy, getting what they want: peace," Trout said. "And, then when that came out, I said ‘Where is this coming from? We're finally getting things done.'"

The non-binding resolution contained a litany of complaints mostly focused on the argument that Trout failed to fulfill - or even attempt to accomplish -- her main campaign promises. Unprepared for such a drastic statement, the board put off its decision for a week, instead adopting a slightly watered down version by a vote of 3-2, which called on Trout to resign if she did not immediately begin fulfilling every one of her campaign promises.

George: And I got a date with the sales woman. She's got a little Marisa Tomei thing going on.

Jerry: Ah, too bad you got a little George Costanza thing going on.

George: I'm going out with her tomorrow, she said she had some errands to run.

Jerry: That's a date?

George: What's the difference? You know they way I work, I'm like a commercial jingle. First it's a little irritating, then you hear it a few times, you hum it in the shower, by the third date it's "By Mennen!".

William Gerhard Mennen IV, known as Will, is a Republican Tewksbury Township Committeeman and a Hunterdon County Freeholder-elect.  He is the heir to the Mennen deodorant and over the counter pharmaceutical fortune. 

His great-grandfather, the son of Mennen founder Gerhard Mennen, was the brother of Elma Mennen Williams, the mother of Mennen Gerhard Williams, known as Soapy, the Democratic Governor of Michigan from 1949 to 1961.

Will Mennen, the heir to an over-the-counter pharmaceuticals fortune, has decided against running for the 7th District Congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson, and will back fellow Hunterdon County Republican state Sen. Leonard Lance.

"I am very flattered to have been asked by a number of respected officials from across our state to run for Congress next year," Mennen said in a statement. "The 7th Congressional District presents a real opportunity for a true conservative candidate to prevail. I am, however, concerned that a divisive primary will lessen the prospects of keeping this seat in Republican hands."

Hunterdon Freeholder-elect Will Mennen, the heir to a deoderant fortune, says he's leaning toward a congressional bidWill Mennen says he spoke with his family over the Thanksgiving break, and they are supportive of his efforts to seek the 7th district U.S. Congressional seat - in the event he decides to run.

"I'm trying to be deliberative about this, because I only want to make this decision once," said the Tewksbury attorney and freeholder-elect. "I'm the type of guy, when I'm in it, I'm in it. That's 110%."

Mennen could be emerging as Hunterdon County's alternative to Senate Minority Leader Leonard Lance, who is also strongly leaning toward running for the seat of retiring U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson. But Mennen said he had conversations with Lance last week and acknowledged today that what the minority leader ends up doing might affect his own decision.

The Courier-News has endorsed Republican Frank Provenzano for re-election as Somerset County Sheriff. In the race for Hunterdon County Freeholder, they have endorsed Republican Freeholder George Melick for re-election and Democrat Sam Thompson for an open seat. READ