Two longtime Cape May County freeholders, including the director, on Tuesday night announced they won’t seek re-election, almost completing the transition to the Donohue era in Cape May politics.
The Daniel Beyel (pictured)/Ralph Sheets announcement came on the same night their colleague, Gerald Thornton, whom they tried to unseat, and Sue Sheppard, the new freeholder who unseated their candidate, took the oath of office.
Freeholder Director Beyel backed an establishment ticket in June 2010 supported by former County GOP Chairman David Von Savage. That ticket suffered a crushing defeat in June to the upstart Thornton-Sheppard campaign led by current GOP Chairman Michael Donohue.
With the power curve bending away from the Von Savage era and into the wheelhouse of Donohue, Beyel and Sheets saw they were likely to be challenged in a June primary and elected to retire, sources say.
