“Keep an eye on Hudson.”
That was what the source said from atop a bar stool this week.
The information must be handled gingerly, of course, because Hudson becomes obsessed with Hudson with even the mere suggestion of a contest, but in this case, the drama transcends the county, with gubernatorial repercussions.
It’s real.
The source of the intrigue boils down to Steve Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City and a candidate for governor in the Democratic Primary.
The Hudson County Democratic Organization (HCDO) originally backed Fulop for governor when there was another chair. When the new chair came in, the organization’s power base shifted from North Bergen Mayor (and former Senator) Nick Sacco and former HCDO Chair Anthony Vainieri, to Union City Mayor (and state Senator) Brian Stack, and Hudson County Executive Craig Guy, the new chair of the HCDO.
After a lot of diner meetings, coffee refills, and clattering piled plates, the new regime ultimately decided to dump Vainieri’s choice (Fulop) and back U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill for Governor in the Primary.
Part of the reason for that goes back to the rift that developed between Fulop and Stack in 2018 when Stack tried to become chair of the HCDO with Fulop’s help. Stack is a manic old school vote harvester and street hustler. Fulop is different. With him, there’s more of an attempt to talk turkey about issues than the priority of delivering them. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t know how to grab votes out there, it’s just not obsessional in quite the same way. When he ran for chair of the county party organization, Stack didn’t end up getting the votes he needed out of Jersey City. He blamed Fulop, and when their unlikely alliance crumbled, they turned into political enemies. That’s the short version.
The guy who beat them back then for the chairmanship was Sacco, or rather the Sacco-backed Amy DeGise. Sacco did a lot of old school legwork that year to beat Stack (and Fulop). Stack would have the last laugh on the other side of redistricting, though, when Sacco became the Democratic Party’s sacrificial lamb to create the next legislative map.
But now Sacco and Fulop have teamed up (they’ve had an on-again, off-again political relationship for years, largely determine by wherever Stack stood at any given time (An oversimplification? Maybe. But not by much).
In a civil war atmosphere, Sacco backs Fulop for governor. Stack backs Sherrill. In the countywide race, Sacco backs Frank Schillari for sheriff. Stack backs Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis. That contest is driving considerable interest among county insiders. Then the pair of Hudson bosses chop up the legislative races between them, too, with either Fulop or Sherrill standing on one or the other. For more on that, go here and here.
A divided Hudson with Sacco and Fulop on one side and Stack and Craig Guy makes for a mangled projected outcome with the Jersey City mayor and his gubernatorial rival, Sherrill, in a dogfight.
If Sherrill slices significantly into the heart of Fulop’s Hudson base, the Jersey City mayor’s allies like to believe that Newark Mayor Ras Baraka mangles Sherrill’s candidacy in neighboring Essex, the congresswoman’s homebase. Talking to sources about U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer’s (D-5) standing in the gubernatorial contest, they point out that Bergen isn’t exactly as airtight as it was even ten years ago, and that if Hudson and Essex pose troubles for their hometown heroes, so does Bergen. Granted, Gottheimer doesn’t have to wrestle with a Bergen rival in his backyard (the way Sherrill does with Baraka and former Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller, all from Essex), or run without the organizational backing of his home county (like Fulop, ceding the backing of the HCDO to Sherrill). But the Bergen Democratic Party couldn’t get U.S. Rep. Nellie Pou past Republican Billy Prempeh in last year’s CD-9 contest – not good, to say the least.
Which brings us to Middlesex, that sprawling Central Jersey county where the Democratic Party organization gave the heave-ho to Sacco’s communications allies last year when they realized the HCDO was “going in another direction,” away from Sacco and Fulop and toward Stack (and ultimately Sherrill). Sources made it clear that Stack’s preferred candidate to succeed Fulop as mayor of Jersey City, former Governor James McGreevey, would no longer require the services of Sacco and Company. That, of course, pushed Sacco closer to Bill O’Dea’s mayoral candidacy.
A no-joke political organization, Middlesex appears to be staunchly in Sherrill’s corner. Like Stack in Hudson, they flirted with Gottheimer, but then went with Sherrill, and when they went, they went in with conviction.
“Make sure you’re in Hudson on election night,” the source advised.
What happens there, boomerangs, leaving no question about the far-reaching implications of conflicts, from the districtwide contests to the sheriff’s race, to the governor’s contest, to the consequences of June 10th on the JC mayor’s race and on the statewide general election (for will the intraparty wounds run too deep to keep certain players from going to the GOP for an alternative?), to the reliance ultimately of the establishment on Middlesex, the least internally combustible, fractious, and impaired of the main counties, and the most politically muscular right now, amid an accelerating upswell of party passion, most substantially conveyed by the happenings in Hudson.
Insider NJ: A Look at Hudson Hijinks, Mangled Counties, Hard Contests, and Middlesex Muscle
New Jersey politics can be a wild and unpredictable world, with its fair share of drama, intrigue, and power struggles. And nowhere is this more evident than in the counties of Hudson and Middlesex.
Hudson County, located in northern New Jersey, has long been known for its political hijinks and backroom deals. The county is home to some of the state’s most powerful political figures, including Senator Bob Menendez and former Mayor of Jersey City, Steve Fulop. With a history of corruption scandals and machine politics, Hudson County is a hotbed of political maneuvering and power plays.
Meanwhile, Middlesex County, located in central New Jersey, is known for its muscle in statewide elections. The county is home to a large and diverse population, making it a key battleground in many political contests. With a strong Democratic presence and a history of close races, Middlesex County is often a bellwether for the state as a whole.
But it’s not just the counties themselves that are interesting – it’s also the contests that take place within them. From hard-fought primary battles to contentious general elections, New Jersey politics is never dull. And with the upcoming gubernatorial race heating up, all eyes are on the Garden State.
So whether you’re a political junkie looking for the latest gossip or just a curious observer of the state’s political landscape, New Jersey has something for everyone. From Hudson hijinks to Middlesex muscle, the state’s political scene is always worth keeping an eye on.
