MORRIS PLAINS - Jason Karr recalls when this borough was "red."

"I broke through that and I was elected," Karr said. He's now the borough's Democratic mayor.

Nancy Verga has memories too - like the first time she went to a council meeting to talk about how to make downtown more viable.

"I got shouted down," she said. What's more, she says she was told to move if she thought other towns along the Morris-Essex train line were doing more with their downtowns.

Verga didn't move.

She got involved, got elected to the borough council and is now running for mayor - with the endorsement of the borough's Democratic Committee.

Karr, a council member for almost 20 years and the mayor since 2019, was bypassed.

But he doesn't want to go anywhere. He's seeking reelection as an independent in November, eschewing a primary challenge to Verga.

No Republican filed to run for mayor, so barring a primary write-in, the election will be between Karr and Verga, two Democrats, albeit one running as an independent.

Karr said in an interview that he's been long dedicated to the Democratic party, but is running as an independent because no Republican filed to run.

Verga, in a separate interview, said simply of her run for mayor:

"The temperature right now in town is such (people) want a different style of leadership."

There is nothing unusual about mayors being challenged from within. In some ways, it's a sign of success.

After all, there's no reason for intra-party fights if a party doesn't control anything. For many years in Morris Plains and surrounding towns that was the case with Democrats  - as Karr, correctly, noted.

Things do change.

And over the last decade, Dems have gained political control of nearby Morris Township, Madison and the two Chathams.- along with Morris Plains, thus setting the stage for the current battle.

Some of the issues here are similar to the issues in suburban towns across New Jersey.

Traffic.

Affordable housing mandates.

Rising fixed costs like insurance.

But in Morris Plains, there's more. Enter McDonald's.

For years, a Friendly's ice cream parlour was on the town's main thoroughfare - Route 202. When it closed, the borough planning board, on which Mayor Karr sits, approved a McDonald's for the site.

There was much resident opposition. Traffic was a big concern.

Unlike Friendly's, McDonald's will have a drive-through.

Opponents unsuccessfully sued the planning board to overturn the approval. The case is now on appeal.

Karr realizes his support for the fast food outlet may be one reason he was not endorsed by local Dems. But he said this should not be a political issue.

Karr's argument is that the McDonald's plan conformed with just about all zoning requirements.

"I made my decision on the facts," he said, adding that a "no" vote by the board likely would have prompted McDonald's to sue.

Verga has a different take. She says borough zoning was changed - very quickly - two years ago. So, in other words, McDonald's conformed to revamped zoning laws.

She said many residents saw the process as not being open and transparent.

"How did we get a two-lane driveway?" she asked.

Transparency in general is always a big issue for those challenging incumbents. Verga is an incumbent herself on the council, but she is challenging the mayor.

She says council meetings were live-streamed during COVID, but the practice was discontinued after the pandemic. She wants it to be resumed.

As for the McDonald's, there is also an issue over how the project is progressing. At the moment, the site is marked by dirt piles.

"(People) don't like what they're seeing," she said.

More broadly, Verga, a communications consultant, who was first elected to the council in 2019, said:

"I'm always thinking of what's possible."

She said many in the borough - Republicans included - asked her to run.

Karr, who works as a machinist for the town of Morristown, says:

"Listen I want this job again. I love doing what I'm doing."

And as an aside, he said of the McDonald's:

"My hunch is it's going to do well in Morris Plains."