In Montgomery, A New Leader to Be Appointed to Fill Seat Vacated by Deputy Mayor Vince Barragan

By Barbara A. Preston for The Montgomery News | July 16, 2026 (Updated at 7:15 pm)

Montgomery leaders are expected to appoint a new township committee member tonight, replacing Vince Barragan who resigned in June and moved to Princeton. Under New Jersey's ⁠Municipal Vacancy Law, when an elected official who was nominated by a political party vacates their seat, the replacement must be from the same political party.

The Montgomery Democratic Organization with assistance from the the Democratic Somerset County Committee selected three nominees for consideration: Amanda Baumunk, Brian M. Cige, and Douglas Herring. Five individuals had expressed interest.

Township committee members will vote to appoint one of the three tonight at the regular meeting at 7 pm in the town hall, according to the meeting agenda. The winner will serve until November.

About the Nominees

Amanda Baumunk during her 2025 campaign for Montgomery Township Committee.

Montgomery News file photo.

Amanda Baumunk, Student

Baumunk first ran for Township Committee when she was a 17-year-old senior at Montgomery High School — making her one of the youngest candidates to seek office. She and her running mate Mazhar Syed lost in the primary to Vince Barragan and Mike Martin - both who went on to serve on Township Committee.

Now 19 years of age, Baumunk will be a freshman at the College of New Jersey in August. She is admitted to the college’s five-year accelerated master’s degree program.

She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (the same party as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani) In June, she was featured in the 100 Rising Generation Leaders in Insider NJ's annual Rising Generations publication in June, highlighting local, county, and state-level Millennial and Gen Z community leaders.

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Brian M. Cige, Lawyer

Cige is a labor and employment lawyer with offices in Somerville and Skillman. He has been practicing law since 1984, according to his website. 

Brian M. Cige.

Photo from his website.

Cige represents employees and businesses with issues such as sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and discrimination claims. He also served as an attorney for the NJEA for eight years.

He has lived in Montgomery Township since 1989, and was chairman of the Montgomery Democratic Organization in the early 1990s. He ran for township committee in the 1990s, but lost. He has served as a volunteer finance chairman for the Somerset County Democratic Organization, and gave his time to serve on a Montgomery School District ad hoc committee to help determine whether the township should build one new high school or two, he told The Montgomery News. They recommended one, which is now located on Route 601 in Skillman.

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Cige says he applied to fill a vacant seat on the Montgomery School Board in 2022 but lost out to Douglas Herring. There were 18 applicants for the seat. Cige has four adult children who graduated from Montgomery High School, and his fifth child is now a senior at MHS.

Cige is a member of Congregation Kehilat Shalom in Belle Mead, and currently resides with his wife Laurence in the Cherry Valley Country Club community.

Cige has served as president of the Somerset County Bar Association and the Somerset County Bar Foundation. He earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Montclair State University in 1981 and his legal degree from Temple University in 1984, according to his online profile.

Douglas Herring, Lawyer

Herring is a criminal defense attorney, and a former state/federal prosecutor. He has served the community as a volunteer with Montgomery Emergency Medical Services (MEMS), an all-volunteer non-profit ambulance squad serving Montgomery Township. He has served as both a captain and an ambulance driver.

Douglas Herring.

Photo from his website.

Herring also was appointed to fill a vacant seat on the Montgomery Township School Board in 2022. Eighteen people had applied to be interviewed for the position. Herring was selected, and served from October to December of that year to fill a vacancy left by long-time member Shreesh R. Tiwari.

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Herring lives in Skillman with his wife, Christine Giviskos, PhD, who was curator of Prints, Drawings, and European Art - Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers University. His daughters Virginia and Andria attend the Montgomery School District.

Herring also ran for school board in November 2022, an unusual election that had 10 candidates for three seats. He lost. He is currently a volunteer photographer, producing quality images of Montgomery athletes and sharing them with the community.

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The Procedure for Filling a Vacancy on Township Committee:

Montgomery Township Deputy Mayor Vincent P. Barragan submitted his resignation letter on June 18, effective immediately.

When a vacancy occurs prior to Sept 1, the office must be filled for its unexpired term at the next general election to be held not less that 60 days after the occurrence of the vacancy. "The governing body may fill the position on a temporary basis until that next general election," according to the NJ Municipal Vacancy Law.

According to the Somerset County Clerk's Office:

1. The Somerset County/Montgomery Democrats nominate three Democrats for the vacant Montgomery Township Committee seat.

2. The Montgomery Township Committee will then vote to appoint one of the three Democratic nominees to the temporary position — just for the remainder of 2026.

3. For the Remaining two years of Barragan's Term (2027 & 2028): Both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party will each get to select a candidate to appear on the ballot for the General Election on November 3, 2026. The names must be submitted to the Somerset County Clerk's Office in early September.

4. Montgomery voters will then elect the winner to fill the final two years of Barragan's term.

Two Montgomery Township Committee Seats Up for Grabs in the General election in November.

1. Incumbent Patricia Todd (Democrat) is running for a second term against Republican Challenger George De Sanctis.

2. One Democrat (undetermined) will run for a two-term against one Republican. Chris Venis (R) recently told The Montgomery News that he will be running for the GOP seat.