ENVILLE - It happens every year.

Democrats in Morris County hope - and hope - that this will be the year they win a county commission seat, something that last happened more than 50 years ago. In 1973 to be exact.

Chris Russo, a Morristown councilman, is this year's Democratic candidate. Only one seat is up.

It's tough running for the county commission, given the fact many voters don't know much about county government - stuck as it is between municipal and state. Clearly, getting rid of the traditional name, "freeholder," did nothing to expand visibility of the office.

That said, Morris Dems are hopeful for two main reasons.

With Donald Trump presiding over an unpopular war and coping with low approval ratings, this looks (as of now) as a good year for Democrats.

They are also getting closer. In last year's race for three seats, the top Democrat lost by a bit more than 4,000 votes.  So, these races are no longer blowouts like they were a generation ago.

Still, Republican-run Morris is a pretty nice place to live by all accounts. And that obviously helps the incumbents.

Tayfun Selen, the incumbent Republican seeking reelection this fall, knows that.

"I'm confident because of my record," Selen said Monday evening amid the good times flowing at Anthony M. Bucco's annual golf outing at the Rockaway River Country Club.

"Seven years no tax rate increase," he said.

He said the commissioners make sure to invest well in County College of Morris and the school of technology in addition to county roads and bridges.

The prevailing view is that Morris is the best county in New Jersey in which to live. There is certainly some truth to that.

Morris is affluent and retains natural beauty - even in an over-developed state like New Jersey.

That helps incumbent Republicans, but Selen says it is also a challenge.

"There's nothing bad about the county," Selen said. "What's hard is to keep it the best county (in the state). That's what we're working on."