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John P. Capizola

John P. “Johnny” Capizola, Jr. is a lifelong Vineland resident, educator, coach, and small-business owner now seeking a full elected term on the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners. He was appointed by the County Democratic Committee in January 2023 to fill an unexpired seat and says the experience has helped him “get his feet wet” in county government while learning how to navigate what he describes as a less partisan, more collaborative board.

Capizola has taught health and physical education in Vineland Public Schools for more than 22 years, holds a master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Wilmington University (summa cum laude), and is certified as a New Jersey principal and supervisor. Outside the classroom he has coached youth sports across Vineland and Atlantic City, served on the Vineland Midget Football League board, and run small businesses including Serafina’s Ristorante & Pizzeria and Parkside Laundromat—experience he says informs his interest in attracting new business and keeping residents in the county.

His past and current campaign materials highlight broad priorities: improving educational opportunities, protecting natural resources, practicing fiscal responsibility with taxpayer dollars, enhancing roads and broadband, supporting senior housing and health care, and expanding recreational amenities. At a 2023 candidates forum he also spoke about the need for better county communication (including the launch of a new website) and a stronger local press, and stated his opposition to school vouchers. This opposition was reinforced in October 2025 when he posted on Facebook, School Choice Discussion, in response to Jack Ciattarelli’s school voucher/school choice remarks during a gubernatorial debate. While education funding and policy are primarily school board/state-level issues, there is genuine overlap at the county level, with apparently county commissioners being involved in CCTEC's school board appointments and county monies helping to fund schools like CCTEC. However, without a formal written position on a website or in a structured candidates’ forum where these kinds of relevant discussion should be had among all the candidates, many voters may be left wondering how relevant this is to the county commissioner race.

So far, public information about Capizola’s platform and appearances has been limited mostly to a joint Facebook page with running mate Yolanda Garcia Balicki. Beyond that page there are little to no policy specifics, event listings, or clearly advertised ways for voters to interact directly with the campaign. This mirrors my own repeated attempts to reach out, which have sometimes been routed between party figures or met with silence. Voters who value his résumé and community roots may find much to like, but those seeking detailed plans or reliable public engagement may still be waiting for more concrete outreach as the campaign season comes to an end.

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Rating Explanation

John P. Capizola

Transparency & Accessibility Rating Explanation (as of 10/13/25)

John Capizola brings a long record of local teaching, coaching, and small-business experience, and he was appointed to the Board of Commissioners in 2023. While those credentials are solid, his 2025 campaign has so far leaned on broad themes and a joint Facebook page with running mate Yolanda Garcia-Balicki—offering little in the way of detailed, easily accessible issue-based information.

To his credit, Capizola is technically out and about on the campaign trail, appearing at county functions and community events where residents may bump into him. He also is out door knocking, though door knocking campaigns tend to be targeted towards reminding your base to get out and vote. Repeated outreach through emails, letters, questionnaires, and neutral forums has yielded little direct engagement. That choice—not to participate in centralized, accountable outlets designed for all candidates—means voters are left without a clear, consistent picture of his county-level platform.

This lands him at a Below Average rating: not invisible, but still leaving many unanswered questions. Voters who value résumé and familiarity may connect with him at in-person events, but those seeking transparent, structured opportunities to hear his views alongside other candidates will likely come away underwhelmed. The door remains open for improvement if he and his running mate step forward with substantive plans on their a campaign websites, or a willingness to participate in broader voter information efforts.

There is, to be totally fair, a fair counterpoint to be made that if the county had centralized campaign events like meet n greets, candidate's forums, introductory interviews, etc., then perhaps candidates like Capizola would just participate in them, giving that they would be well-established, trusted platforms. However, I started making suggestions like that 2.5 years ago when he was a sitting commissioner, so.... here we are I guess.

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Note: There are a few ways to use this page. It mixes objective source material with light analysis and first-hand reporting so voters can choose their depth.

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    • Official campaign website (if available)
    • Social media pages and posts (if available)
    • Interviews (video/audio) and transcripts (if available)
  3. Check the agenda & positions. Look for the candidate’s stated agenda and issue stances. We try to group them plainly so you can compare across candidates quickly.
  4. Read the Transparency/Accessibility rating. For a deeper look at how transparent the candidate has been (web presence, interviews, follow-ups, meet n greets) and how communicative they've been in response to outreach, see the rating and its short explanation. This helps you understand what’s easy to find and who is easy to contact.
  5. Use the page as a multi-layered hub. If you 'just want the facts', stick to the source documents. If you want opinions about transparency, accessibility, and communication, check the transparency meter. If you want coverage somewhere in between, like interviews that range from introductory to moderately pressing, watch the interviews. Choose your own adventure.

Where we add context or opinion, it’s to help busy voters make sense of gaps in local information. Not everyone has time to be a volunteer politico.

John P. Capizola

Running for:
Cumberland County Commissioner
Incumbent
Challenger

Websites

This election is on November 4th, 2025

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Transparency/Accessibility Rating: Below Average



Events

As of September 11, 2025, InformTheVoteNJ searched the official Cumberland County Democrats website, the joint Capizola/Garcia-Balicki Facebook page, and other public listings (Mobilize, local news, etc.). No publicly advertised campaign events for either candidate were found.

This screenshot shows the “Events” page on the Cumberland County Democrats website at the time of review, which displayed no upcoming events:

Empty events page on Cumberland County Democrats site showing no upcoming events


Agenda

As of October 13th, the only info available regarding Capizola's current general election campaign is on the and his facebook page has one substantive thread


Info Collected From PRIOR Elections

Agenda

  • Educational excellence by supporting schools and providing lifelong learning opportunities
  • Environmental sustainability by protecting our natural resources for future generations
  • Fiscal responsibility by ensuring efficient use of taxpayer dollars
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  • Improve roads/infrastructure/broadband, support senior housing and healthcare, and provide recreational advancements facebook campaign site

policy positions

After reaching out to Capizola multiple times with no substantive response, it is unclear what his current policy positions are. However, we might be able to infer the following from last year's efforts:
  • Supports armed security in schools. (learned from the Candidates Forum held at Bridgeton High School)


Capizola and Austino also brought up an issue regarding South Ave in Bridgeton while on the campaign trail: Source, however it seems as though the issue is in the process of being handled: Source, County Press Release.

Background and Campaign Message

Cumberland County Democrats chose Capizola to serve out an unexpired, one-year term on the county Board of Commissioners, replacing the resigning Castellini. Capizola was sworn in January 24th, 2023. Source
He majored in health and physical education. He has a master's degree in Educational Leadership. He has certifications to be a New Jersey principal and Supervisor. He also has business experience in regards to owning a restaurant and a laundromat.

Experience

NJ District 1 Assemblyman - Sworn in on January 14th 2020 Serving on the following Committees: Community Development and Affairs/Education/State and Local Government Mayor, Lower Township - 2016-2020; Former Ward 2 and ward 3 Councilman Master’s Degree in Education Administration, University of Scranton; Bachelor’s degree, The College of New Jersey, Special Education Degree, Rutgers University

2023 Candidates Forum Statements

When asked what makes him most qualified to serve as Commissioner at the Candidates Forum held at Bridgeton High School, Capizola spoke about how he is just getting his feet wet as an appointed Commissioner. He seemed to convey that he is learning a lot about county politics quickly and has watched his board of commissioners transform from very partisan to mostly non-partisan during his tenure. He hopes to continue that trend. He wants to help attract people who have left the county to come back by helping to entice new business, which he can help with through his business experience. He also seemed to imply that he may be a rising star as he may be the new assistant principal at the school where he works.

When asked about improving transparency and accountability, Capizola spoke about needing to communicate better with the community, the new county website which should be done soon, and needing reporters in the county.

At one point during the forum, Capizola made it clear that he is against school vouchers.