In New Jersey, the newly elected 24-year-old mayor of a town is facing scrutiny after reports emerged that his car was repossessed. This claim was made by the outgoing mayor in a pointed statement following his election defeat.
Michael Melham, the 51-year-old outgoing mayor of Belleville, lost to the young and fresh-faced councilman Frank Velez. Melham, who served as mayor for eight years, did not hold back in his Facebook concession message, which was more of a verbal assault than a formal acknowledgment of defeat.
“To clear up the rumors swirling today… the Mayor’s car was NOT repossessed this morning!” Melham declared in his post on Wednesday.
He continued, “I have a job and a successful career. However, I can confirm it was actually the new Mayor, the Mayor-elect’s car that was repossessed. As I mentioned… I’m praying for you, Belleville.”
Melham has consistently criticized Velez, targeting the young politician’s personal life, such as still living with his parents, and questioning his qualifications.
The election on Tuesday followed a significant incident in Belleville—a massive 14-alarm warehouse fire on May 3. The blaze led to school closures, extensive evacuations, power outages, and damage to homes, setting a dramatic backdrop for the political transition.
Melham faced backlash for his handling of the fire and despite the high-stakes fallout, Velez’s blowout victory was secured in a remarkably low-turnout election.
While 10,832 voters went the polls for the town’s general election last November, turnout completely cratered for Tuesday’s race.
Only 5,523 total ballots were cast out of Belleville’s 26,760 registered voters, with Velez securing his landslide victory with just 3,281 individual votes (59.41%) to unseat incumbent Melham, who brought in 2,242 votes (40.59%).
The tiny turnout means a mere fragment of the blue-collar community’s roughly 40,000 residents ultimately decided the bitter race.
Analysts say that the devastating warehouse fire did not sway the election overnight, rather, the fire may have exacerbated a political shift against Melham.
“Not even a crisis lie the warehouse fire really can change things overnight,” Micah Rasmussen of Rider University’s Rebovich Institute told New Jersey 101.5.
“What it can do is reinforce concerns people may already have had,” he continued.
Rasmussen further posited that Melham’s allegation that Velez had his car repossessed is “sour grapes,” and that “it really underscores the need to check yourself before you say something that you can’t put back.”
“If you can’t be gracious, then you probably shouldn’t go out and give a concession speech at all.”
Velez, who will assume office on July 1, did not respond to The Post’s request for comment about Melham’s allegation.
The mayor-elect previously served as a trustee on the Belleville Board of Education while he was in college and simultaneously managed social media strategy for many local campaigns.
