MOUNT HOLLY - There are three seats up for grabs this year in Burlington County's government, and yesterday's primary merely formalized the already heated contests.

The race for a three-year seat on the county Board of Freeholders has been the hottest so far. Democratic challenger Chris Fifis is several weeks into what has been an aggressive campaign against incumbent Republican Vince Farias. Both men ran unopposed in yesterday's primary.

Fifis, a Lumberton resident, received 8,617 votes. Farias, who lives in Edgewater Park, collected 10,178 votes.

The freeholder race should become even more interesting heading into November thanks to the candidacy of marijuana activist Ed "NJWeedman" Forchion of Pemberton Township. Forchion filed petitions to qualify as a third-party candidate for the freeholder race yesterday, the deadline to submit petitions for public office.

Forchion said he would use the bid for county office to campaign against laws that ban marijuana use and to protest judges in Burlington County.

"That's all I'm going to do," said Forchion, who also ran for freeholder in 2000. "It's my way of exercising free speech."

The race for the five-year county clerk position also heated up early this year. Kristin Walker, the Democratic candidate, has challenged incumbent Republican Phil Haines several times since April, but she has also drawn counterattacks from Haines.

 
 
Walker, who lives in Moorestown, and Haines, a Springfield resident, both ran unopposed yesterday. Walker and Haines received 8,750 and 10,420 votes respectively.

The third countywide race this year pits incumbent Burlington County Sheriff Jean Stanfield against former Lum-berton Mayor Preston Taylor. Stanfield, a Republican from Westampton, ran unopposed in yesterday's primary and picked up 10,291 votes. Taylor, a Democrat, also ran unopposed, collecting 8,838 votes.

A three-year term is at stake in November.

Overall, voter turnout was light throughout the county yesterday. Burlington County has 51,934 registered Democrats, 51,363 registered Republicans and 138,195 voters registered as unaffiliated.

The primary drew 22,583 participants, or just over 9 percent of the total registered voting base.

However, high turnout numbers were reported in Lumber-ton, Moorestown, New Hanover and Southampton, the towns that had contested local primaries.

Countywide turnout is expected to surge by November because there is a presidential race and 30 municipal contests on the ballot this year.

Email: jreitmeyer@phillyBurbs.com