According to the local daily newspaper, Jersey City Councilwoman Nidia Lopez (pictured) failed on Friday to have dismissed in state Superior Court a lawsuit filed against her to vacate her seat. A judge ruled otherwise and the case goes to trial on Oct. 26.
The lawsuit, originally filed by Jimmy King, her opponent in the May muncipal election where she won the Ward C council seat while he finished in a distant second, claimed Lopez’s primary residence in is Florida, and she had not paid New Jersey income taxes for several three years while filing federal taxes in Florida. The lawsuit was then picked up by the third place opponent in the Ward C race, Norrice Raymaker, after King pleaded guilty to taking bribes from government informant Solomon Dwek.
Lopez’s attorney, William Northgrave, wanted the case dismissed due to it being filed more than 30 days after Lopez was elected, and that Raymaker should not have been able to take over the case from King. Lopez told the Jersey City Reporter on Wednesday that she had hoped the case would be dismissed but said if the case went to trial and she had to vacate her seat, she would have “no regrets,” and would continue to help people that she has met as a councilperson.
In related news, Raymaker is holding a fundraiser pancake breakfast this Sunday to help pay the costs of the lawsuit against Lopez. The breakfast will be held at Zap’s Bar, 153 Oakland Ave., from 10 a.m. to noon. – RK
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