EGG HARBOR CITY – No independent had landed on a November ballot here since Clifford Mays made it a three-horse race for mayor in 1988. But neither of the two major parties had left vacancies, either, until this year.

Only one Republican, council candidate Frank Maccri, joined the city-government campaign in time for the primary, leaving two vacancies for council bids and one for the mayoral race. But three registered Republicans have formed an “independent Republican” ticket to fill out the slate.

“When we realized that there were no petitions filed for some of the positions, we were concerned because the citizens of Egg Harbor City would not have a choice,”said Elizabeth J. Surpless, a 12-year member of the county Republican committee but first-time council candidate. Surpless said she would have filed in time for the primary had she known there would be vacancies, adding she was surprised that there were.

“Sometimes there are just more people who are able to get involved, for personal reasons,” Surpless said. “Sometimes you have to work on getting more members out.”

Janet Reinhard will face incumbent Mayor Joseph Kuehner, who beat Mays for the Democratic nomination. Terri Cantz and Surpless will join Maccri in opposing Democrats Doug Dickinson, Ina Duran and Hazel Mueller. Dickinson and Duran are incumbents.

Cantz served six months as an appointed councilwoman but has lost five elections since 2002, three of them by only a handful of votes. Cantz fell to Duran last year by three votes in a special election to finish an unexpired term.

A full slate of independents has campaigned each year since 2005 in Hammonton, but all have been members of the Hammonton First political organization that holds a majority on town government. This year’s candidates are Tom Gribbin, Jeanne S. Lewis and Sam Rodio. Lewis is a former five-term councilwoman.

Two other independent candidates are running in smaller Atlantic County municipalities.

Giles G. Fox has joined the Estell Manor City Council campaign under the “Honest-Change-Respect” designation. He’ll face Republican incumbent Albert Barbetto in the city’s lone race; a voter-registration database updated in 2007 listed Fox as an unaffiliated voter.

Estell Manor saw independent Creed Pogue withdraw from the race last year, and in 2005 Joseph Venezia won the mayor’s office as an independent. He is now a Democrat.

The other candidate this year is Folsom’s John C. Eby. He began his nine years of council service in 1993 and remained independent the whole time. Eby last ran for council in 2005, again as an independent.

At one point during Eby’s stint, five of six Folsom council members were independent.

Independents also will appear on November ballots in Atlantic City, Buena and Pleasantville.

To e-mail Eric Scott Campbell at The Press:

ECampbell@pressofac.com