Kearny needs a new mayor

[Guest Ashely]

In Kearny, Mayor Alberto G. Santos has served since he first won a 2-year term against Republican John Leadbeater back in 1999 and he is not too far away from reaching half of Rodgers’s longevity.

After he took office in 2000 ­— and it became clear he had an open lane to keeping his seat as long as he desired — Santos and his colleagues changed the mayoral and council terms from 2 years to 4 years. And that’s fine given how fast a turnaround a 2-year term truly is election-wise. 

Just ask any member of Congress.

But when it’s 4-year term after term after term after term, it’s possible — and probable — in general terms, that one person could get stale. One person could get too complacent. One person could get too dictatorial. 

And term limits, frankly, would fix that. 

So the time to ensure no one person can spend a lifetime in a single position of authority is here. 

Term limits are needed. Not just on a local level, either — they’re needed for almost all offices, including and especially for Congress. 

Though as much as we encourage them, we’re fairly certain we’ll never see term limits. Because we know few currently sitting on a dais anywhere would be ready to cede the power, the prestige.

But if ever there was a time for it, it’s now.