Former State Senator: 'I Would Have Resigned, Too'

Former State Sen. Leanna Brown, a long-time resident of Chatham Borough, said she sympathized with .

"I think it's an awkward time at best," Brown said. "A lame duck period has its pluses and minuses. I think for Vaughan it had all minuses, and I would have resigned, too."

Brown said Vaughan's mayoral style, which she described "very hands-on," likely made the loss tougher for him to bear.

"He spent a lot of time in . That's Vaughan's style and I respect him for it," but "it's not a very cheery thing to do, ... [to] walk into a place where you've been kingpin, and now you're a displaced kingpin."

Bassam Gergi, the campaign manager for Vaughan's second mayoral bid and borough resident Douglas Herbert's 2010 run for Congress, released a statement Thursday in the wake of Vaughan's resignation.

In part, it read, "Vaughan was a man of vigor and tireless work ethic; as a friend, I know that it is not in his character to hold the position as merely a figure head."

Brown said she had no doubt that Vaughan was committed to a second term. "I saw him on Election Day walking around town at 4 p.m. talking to people. You don't do that if you don't want it," she said.

Borough Clerk Susan Caljean, Administrator Robert Falzarano and Attorney Joseph Bell said that to their knowledge, no mayor in the borough has resigned before.