Candidates running in this year’s Board of Education election who thought Mayor James Davis would stay out of the race have gotten a rude surprise. Davis last week endorsed five candidates for the November election, raising a howl of protest from a number of candidates who were not endorsed.
Many believed that when he supported the referendum that established an elected board last year, Davis was also supporting an open election that would allow each candidate to run on his or her own merits.
But as many are learning, Davis has become much more politically savvy since being elected, and is attempting to stop potential rivals from using the board as a platform to launch future challenges against him in municipal elections.
Unfortunately for Davis, his endorsements could actually increase opposition, as former political allies see this as betrayal.
With 18 candidates seeking five seats, Davis’ endorsement will help direct Davis voters to those he wants to see elected.
In some ways, this is a lesson about getting what you ask for.
An elected board always comes with the nasty taste of politics. But for some supporters of alternative candidates, the Davis endorsements only support their belief that nothing in Bayonne politics really has changed.
While former Mayor Mark Smith appointed board members under the old system, Davis seems to be doing the same with his endorsements. This lives up to the old song lyric by The Who: “Meet the new boss/same as the old boss.”
But don’t dismiss former Smith loyalists running for the board. Already, they are sowing the seeds of discord they believe will allow them to win.
Behind the scenes in the Jersey City Board of Education election
A number of people, including some supporters of Mayor Steven Fulop, have questioned why Gina Verdibello has been cast out when it comes to candidates for the Board of Education.
Marilyn Roman and Vidya Gangadin are running with John Reichart rather than with Verdibello.
Gangadin is board president, partly through the good graces of Mayor Fulop, who orchestrated a revolt last year against the candidates he originally got elected.
The old board had resisted his attempts to get the school district to rent pre-K classrooms in new residential developments. Fulop was willing to grant additional tax abatements to developers if they built those classrooms.
The school board at the time said “No.”
So Fulop helped orchestrate the overthrow of candidates that he formerly supported. In quietly supporting Reichart, who has ties to a local developer, some people are wondering if Fulop intends to revive his pre-K classroom plans.
This is the second slight against Verdibello in two years.
Last year, the teachers union supported two of Verdibello’s running mates, but not her.
Fulop, of course, also switched sides during last year’s election in order to show his strong support for unions. He will need union support if he intends to run for governor in 2017.
Fulop: the grudge factor
Even before he was elected to City Council, Fulop apparently wanted to become governor. This, at least, is what insiders close to him are saying. His ambition to jump from mayor of New Jersey’s second-largest city to governor is one of the worst-kept secrets in Jersey City and the state.
And Fulop holds grudges against those who stand in his way, some insiders say.
His wrath most recently appears to be aimed at Freeholder Gerald Balmir, whose wife took a job with the office of state Sen. Steve Sweeney, Fulop’s rival for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. The mayor’s wrath more or less guarantees that Fulop will oppose Balmir’s reelection in 2017, the same year Fulop would run for governor if nominated.
Fulop helped get Balmir elected as freeholder as vengeance against then-Freeholder Jeff Dublin, to punish Dublin’s support of Jerramiah Healy, the incumbent whom Fulop vanquished from City Hall.
Although a lot of early Fulop supporters hope to ride his coattails to the State House, some believe Fulop is moving too fast and making too many local enemies. He also has significant opposition outside Hudson County, including the very powerful state Sen. Ray Lesniak, who also wants to become governor.
Fulop is pushing to have the Jersey City municipal elections moved from May to November in 2017. This would allow him to run for governor in the June primary, and still run for reelection as mayor if he fails to get the Democratic nomination. But insiders are cautioning him against this tactic, saying state law may prohibit the change because it would benefit him personally. The change would have to take affect in the 2021 municipal election instead.
Some insiders think Fulop should simply refrain from running for governor in 2017. Instead, he should work to reunite Jersey City, and make himself stronger locally for the 2021 race.
What’s up with Kopko?
Some people are beginning to wonder about the dramatic change in Republican Assembly candidate Matthew Kopko.
For some reason, Kopko appears to have become a totally different candidate than he was prior to the June primary.
In fact, early on, even some Democrats embraced Kopko for his positive message, and his realistic attitude toward issues in Hudson County.
During the primary, the central conflict was between Bruce Alston and the ultimate primary winner, Nicholas Chiaravalloti. After the primary, Kopko began to go negative against Chiaravalloti, too, and, in fact, began to sound so much like Alston that they might have been twins separated at birth.
The hostilities are so intense they are likely to spill over into a courtroom after the election.
Quietly running for mayor
While candidates for Hoboken City Council ward seats clashed in debates last week conducted by The Hudson Reporter, Freeholder Anthony Romano is building a foundation for his 2017 run for mayor.
Labor leaders recently came to Hoboken to offer their support, apparently angered by the perceived anti-development stance of Mayor Dawn Zimmer.
“They see what’s happening in Jersey City, and see Hoboken as missing an opportunity to grow,” said one source close to Romano.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.