He’s been at this for 18 years now, the so-called Cicero of Edison politics, known as such because of his facility with the language, and now Councilman Bob Diehl wants a freeholder seat and is running off the line in the countywide Democratic Primary.

“It’s something I have thought about for a long time,” said Diehl. “Nobody involved in the race has the experience I have. I feel it’s my time.”

Forty years in education and nearly half that as an elected official give the councilman the groundwork for a run, Diehl said. “I’m very good at my performance in my day job, and as a councilman, nobody in Edison has worked with four different mayors,” he added.

He believes he has worked sufficiently hard and effectively to launch an off-the-line campaign against the party machine, which this year backs incumbent Freeholders Charles Kenny, Ken Armwood and Clary Azcona-Barber (who’s replacing the retiring Blanquita Valenti) for freeholder.

“I’ve done a lot of campaigns, and one of the things that works is knocking on doors,” Diehl said. “I’m going to approach this campaign like all other campaigns. No one has received more votes than I have in Edison elections.”

Middlesex County Clerk Elaine Flynn’s decision to push back the filing deadline from 4 p.m. on Monday to 4 p.m. on Tuesday created some anguish around the county, and there’s a court challenge this morning.

Diehl said it didn’t really affect him.

“It was confusing,” said the councilman. “I understood the deadline was Monday. Then it was Tuesday.  When I inquired why, they said a notice had gone out with a decision to extend it by a day. It’s a shame, but I’m not going to trip over a pebble of sand. Quite frankly it’s something that happens in government.”

Diehl is affiliated with an off-the-line slate of Edison Council candidates, including incumbent Councilmen Len Sendelsky and Councilman Mike Lombardi.

The full countywide ticket from New Brunswick Today’s Charles Kratovil:

Sheriff: Melissa Perilstein (against incumbent Sheriff Mildred Scott)

Freeholder: Councilman Diehl, Rajesh C. Patel, & Kwong Yiu Chan

(Plus Hatem “Tim” Wahba of Dunellen is also running for Sheriff).

“I feel very good about the people involved,” Diehl said of the insurgency.

A Middlesex source told InsiderNJ that Diehl’s countywide candidacy is mostly to anchor the off-the-line Edison candidates in a town where candidates filed 300 party committee petitions.

Some of his government experience includes:

Term Expires December 31, 2021

• Edison Township Council (2001-Present)
• Township Council President (Six Terms)
• South Plainfield Elementary School, Principal
• §  N.J. Dismal Swamp Preservation Commission; Commissioner
• Edison Open Space Committee; Member
• Edison Environmental Commission; Member
• Edison Parks Committee; Member
• Kean College of N.J.; B.A., Political Science
• Master’s Degree, Supervision & Administration
• Robert and his wife, Anne, are parents of two adult children