Anybody who thinks voters will get to choose the county sheriff candidate of their choice in the upcoming Democratic Primary in June is in for a shock.
While Incumbent Sheriff Juan Perez may be on the ballot, it is unlikely that he will have the blessing of the Hudson County Democratic Organization, since several North Hudson mayors have pressured Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy into withdrawing support for Perez. Even before the first vote is counted, Undersheriff Frank Schillari of Secaucus is already their choice and thus, likely the person with the best chance. Of course, the county will have to go through the motions of a primary election in June and a general election in November against the Republicans. Little short of a political tea party movement can derail the Schillari train, even with some questions about his background (see news story elsewhere in the newspaper).
Although Perez got the word last week, the best indication of his ill favor came during the weekend’s Jersey City St Patrick’s Day Parade, when he and his associate Bobby Knapp walked completely by themselves.
“The word was out,” said one local political observer. “Nobody wanted to be seen marching with them.”
Witnesses say Perez, one of the most prominent Latino public officials in Hudson County, was actually booed in the Kearny parade.
With Kearny being an Irish city, it is understandable that people would back an Irishman like Schillari, but as outgoing Bayonne City Council President Vincent Lo Re has noted, there is a basic lack of civility in today’s public where it becomes okay to abuse public officials, whether is it a congressman calling the president of the United States a liar during a speech, or people booing a sheriff who has come to pay tribute to great Irish saint.
The Jersey City parade, of course, saw some interesting other tidbits including the clustering of Mike Manzo, Guy Catrillo, and Phil Kenny – three public officials charged with taking bribes in a federal sting operation last summer.
Former State Assemblyman Louis Manzo, who was also charged, didn’t march in the parade. But like the famous Jedi Knights of Star Wars, he is taking the battle to court, claiming that the whole bribe sting last sumer was nothing more than an effort by the U.S. attorney’s office to get former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie elected governor.
Former Jersey City Mayor and newly named commissioner for the state Department of Education Bret Schundler returned to his roots to meet with about 200 Jersey City parents about the proposed changes they can expect. Activist Shelly Skinner believes Shundler’s roots in Jersey City will help get some of the state funding to the district restored. But don’t bet your house on it.
War in Secaucus
It’ll be Democrat against Democrat in the upcoming Secaucus June Primary as Democratic Municipal Chairman Vincent Prieto runs a ticket that does not include the one surviving Democratic councilman on the council, John Shinnick.
You have to wonder how much of this was planned back before last November’s municipal elections when Prieto decided the Democrats shouldn’t run anyone against Independent candidate Mike Gonnelli for mayor.
While Gonnelli denies that he made a deal with Preito to remain unchallenged, some Secaucus Democrats believe that Prieto has sold out the party to the Secaucus Independents, and is basically purging the last of the Democrats associated with former Mayor Dennis Elwell.
Preito inherited leadership of the Secaucus Democratic Party when Elwell resigned as mayor and Democratic chairman after being charged in a federal bribery sting last July. Elwell has been accused of allegedly accepting a bribe offered by government informant Solomon Dwek.
Prieto, the state assemblyman for the 32nd District, became the senior Democratic official and though he was not in line to succeed Elwell as chairman, members of the Secaucus Democratic Committee agree to step aside to allow him to take the leadership.
With reports surfacing of secret meetings between Preito and Gonnelli – which Gonnelli still denies – Prieto decided to run no opposition to Gonnelli for mayor in November.
“If I had known he was going to do that, I wouldn’t have stepped aside for him,” said one committee person.
Gonnelli’s ticket went on to sweep incumbent Democrats out of the three challenged seats, leaving Shinnick – a very vocal critic – as the last Democrat on the council.
Because of hurried legislation passed by the state legislature in 2001 to change elected terms from two to four years, Secaucus has back-to-back elections, one year the mayor running with three ward council members followed the next year by an election for the remaining three council seats.
Seeking to establish a ticket without ties to Elwell, Prieto has decided not to support Shinnick’s reelection. Some believe that the Democrats will deliberately put up a weak ticket against a strong Gonnelli ticket in November, with Preito ally Mark Buccino taking Shinnick’s place as the lone Democrat, and allowing him to boast that he saved one seat from the Independents.
The question is: will old guard Democrats tolerate a ticket of token opposition to one backed by Gonnelli?
Apparently former councilman and Elwell ally Bob Kickey is trying to put together another Democratic ticket that would challenge the ticket backed by Prieto in the June primary. This ticket could include former Councilman Richard Kane in the 1st Ward, John Shinnick in the 3rd, and a candidate to be named later in the 2nd Ward.
Shinnick is a tough candidate if he decides to run, but Secaucus politics has always been creative, and it is likely that former Board of Education member Susan Pirro would run as a spoiler to steal votes from Shinnick in the vote-wealthy Harmon Cove townhouse complex, thus steering the primary to Buccino.
As angry at Prieto as some Democrats might be over this supposed betrayal, they would be helpless to unseat Prieto in the June Democratic Committee election a week after the June primary, partly because so many of the key committee people have jobs with the town, and will likely vote the way Gonnelli tells them to vote. And Gonnelli would be a fool to get rid of Prieto after all Prieto has done for him.