While some people may be surprised, election season officially kicked off on July 27 when candidates around the county filed for this fall’s school board races. With the exception of North Bergen and Weehawken, residents around Hudson County will vote for their school boards in November.
Bayonne will hold its first election for school board in several decades. Five of the nine seats are contested, so the number of people running may lend a bit of confusion to the ballot. Bayonne will stagger its seats, so some candidates will run for one-year terms, others two-year terms, and others for a full three years.
The seats currently held by Trustees Michael Masone, Patrick F. O’Donnell, Mary Jane Desmond, Raymond Greaves, and Christopher Piechocki are all up for grabs. Desmond and Greaves were appointed a few months ago to fill vacant seats. But only Desmond and Piechocki filed petitions to retain their seats for three year terms.
Greaves is rumored to be front-runner for the Board of Freeholders to replace recently-elected Freeholder Ken Kopacz. While Kopacz says he intends to retain his seat, rumors claim the transition will take place in February.
This is going to be a crowded race with a number of prominent local names seeking seats. Well-established on the local political scene, David Solari will challenge political heavyweights Denis Wilbeck, Rafael Augusto, John Butchko and Deb Peveler for the one-year term.
Thomas Howard Jr., Christos Genes, Gina Irizarry, Christopher Munoz, Adam Semanchick, Frank Pellitteri and Michael Alonzo will all seek the two-year seat. Alonso has significant name recognition, partly because of his previous experience running campaigns, and as the man behind the referendum that allowed for an elected board. He is opposed by very creditable candidates such as Genes and community activist Semanchick.
While Desmond and Piechocki have some advantage as incumbents, they are competing against a large field of candidates that include well-known Leonard Kantor, who has run for mayor and council in the past. John Cupo, who is also running, has run for council in the past. But the field includes a number other prominent local citizens such as Barry Kushnir, Patrick McManuz, Nancy Olis, Ava Finnerty, and Joseph Broderick.
Board of Education elections elsewhere
The Jersey City school board election with four candidates running for three seats will not be as hotly contested as last year.
Incumbents Marylyn Roman and Vidya Gangadin are trying to retain their seats for another three-year term, while Gina Verdibello and John Reichart are possibly competing for the third open seat or perhaps to unseat one of the incumbents.
Secaucus has six candidates running for three seats.
Former trustee Tom Troyer will again make a run even though he has lost his last three bids. Norma Hanley, recently named to fill a vacant seat, will try to keep that seat for a three-year term. Trustee Kelli D’Addetta is also trying to retain her seat. Others running include Joan Cali, Louis Giele, and Dorothy Nicholson. The big surprise is the fact that Robert Anderson has chosen not to seek reelection.
In Hoboken, Thomas Kluepfel will try to retain his Board of Education seat for another three-year term. Other candidates running for three seats include Patricia Waiters, Sheilla Dallara, Diane Rubino, Addys Velez, Britney Montgomery, Alanna Kauffman, and John Madigan.
In West New York, incumbents Lorena Portillo and Matthew Cheng will try to retain their seats in a race that will have eight candidates seeking three seats.
This is the third round of elections for Board of Education since Hoboken voters approved a referendum moving the election to November in 2013.
Others seeking seats include Jonathan Castaneda, Wendell Oms, Almer Martin Casadiego, Boris Gresely, Ronald Scheurle and Benita Parets.
Former Guttenberg Police Chief Joel Magenheimer will run for one of three seats on the Guttenberg Board of Education in a race that has three candidates seeking three seats. Magenheimer is a well-established community figure. The other two candidates are incumbents Rebecca Vazquez and Juana Malave.
Bad feelings linger
A July fundraiser at the Liberty House in Jersey City honoring Rep. Albio Sires picked at some political scabs even while the politicians in attendance tried to maintain decorum.
Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop was one of the key figures at the event, and there appeared to have been some political tension between Fulop and state Sen. Ray Lesniak.
There is still a little bad blood between Fulop and Sires over the 2013 municipal election when Sires backed Fulop’s opponent for mayor. There have also been rumors about some key Fulop people talking behind the scenes about replacing Sires in the House of Representatives with someone from Jersey City. Fulop reportedly also backed a challenger to Sires a few years ago.
The arrival of former U.S. Sen. Robert Torricelli appeared to have surprised no one since Torricelli has been making the political rounds in a supposed bid to fill the seat of U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, should Menendez’s current struggle with corruption charges drive him from office. The former senator and Gov. Christopher Christie, who would appoint Menendez’s successor, are said to be very close friends.
Menendez is under indictment, but he will not be unseated easily.
There are some people, however, who believe Torricelli has his eye on another prize, and may perhaps be planning to run for governor. This would put him on a collision course with Fulop, who has his own eye on that seat.
Most, however, believe Torricelli has too much baggage to run for any office, and that some of his past issues concerning questionable campaign contributions will get dragged back out if he makes a run.
In two places at once
Meanwhile, closer to home, Carmelo Garcia, candidate in the 6th Ward council race in Hoboken, has two events planned for Aug. 3 at the same time. The first is a $300 per person fundraiser. The second is a rally in front of the library.
Garcia, who was driven out as executive director the Hoboken Housing Authority, is taking aim at unseating Jennifer Giattino in the November mid-term council elections.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.