Six Democrats Run in the 2025 NJ Governor's Race

Better ballots, more choice, and lack of local newspapers will make this race an intelligence test for voters. So with "choices" this time, how are we thinking about the Governor race in Bloomfield?

In the 2025 New Jersey Governor’s race, we have SIX viable Dem candidates. It’s a new world for us—choices. Unfortunately, from previous races and consistent lack of choice, our chronic voter apathy needs to be reversed. We need democratic voter action, and 2025 is our year.

In June, New Jersey Democrats will decide without ballot lines and without newspapers who our November candidate will be. This Governor’s race is an intelligence test—an intelligence test that the powerful, politically-connected folks hope we will fail.

Yes, I said they hope we “fail,” so pay attention.

Bloomfield is the central artery of Essex County and the New Jersey party bosses. Understand us, and you'll gain some insight as to your candidate of choice. At the heart of this story is our history of uncontested elections and a recent, in broad daylight event of nightmarish electioneering. The right to vote in free and fair elections is the cornerstone of our democracy. We have rules regarding law enforcement activity at polling places, early voting sites, as well as the importance of protecting voters from intimidation and coercion. So what happened here in Bloomfield?

To understand this story, we go back to June 1st during the primary and then even earlier to one year ago, January 2024 in our Bloomfield Town Council.

June 1st, A parade of adults and children chanting on the sidewalks

In my car, about mid-day, on June 1, 2024, this writer drove northeast on Glenwood Avenue. Then, while stopped at the traffic light at Lackawanna Place, I witnessed a strange sight—on the sidewalk across the street, about 24 or 30 white European type folks (about 1/3 of them children), marched together and carried political signs, and proceeded to the corner at Glenwood.
The front end of the group stopped for the red light and my light turned green. As I drove past the group, I believe I heard them chanting “unfair.”

“Unfair.” What did unfair mean? This was a somewhat surreal experience—white folks in purple t-shirts chanting unfair, teaching their white kids to be bitter about something—surreal considering the location, a neighborhood in Bloomfield New Jersey that was once considered undesirable with cold-water flats and dubbed “Negro Quarters.” This picture of their “protest” is now forever filed in my memory—especially the children, the purple shirts and the ghosts that still live in that neighborhood—but what’s happened since that day six-months ago haunts the ideals of what would be considered social justice and fair-election process.

This started one year ago.

In January 2024, after former Bloomfield Mayor Michael Venezia ascended in the previous November election to become Assemblyman Venezia, a contentious mayoral replacement meeting occurred among the powers of our Local Dem Committee with Dem Chair Venezia favoring, as in take it or take it, Councilwoman Jenny Mundell.

Verbal posturing, one straw poll, more verbal arguments, and finally a vote by the Town Council folks at a publicly announced council meeting elected Councilman Ted Gamble to be the interim mayor to finish Venezia’s remaining term. (This writer was there that day.)

Newly elected Mayor Gamble’s election did not sit well with the leaders in power of our Essex County Democratic Committee, LeRoy Jones, or even with the State Dem Chair, LeRoy Jones. (There are no typos in the previous sentence.) Former Mayor Venezia, now our Assemblyman and to-this-day-still (1/28/2024) our Bloomfield Dem Committee Chair, called it a “power grab,” but some of us were not going to “take it” sitting down.

The District Leaders of Bloomfield became a splintered group with some in the Jenny Mundell camp and aligned with The County Power and the “others.” In hindsight, the “others” had not yet grasped the reality that they are a meager few independent thinkers up against The County Boss Power, county power now threatened. This was January 2024.

[My story: by the June primary, I would be elected to be another of those independent thinker District Leaders too, but I digress. Let’s go back now to April, as the Primary Challenge runs in earnest.]

Nothing is too big or to small to get this candidate elected.

By April 2024, Councilwoman and Mayoral Candidate Jenny Mundell had a campaign office on Washington Street, a growing campaign war chest—a chest that would crest at over $100,000 by election day in June—and the endorsement of our NJ11 Representative, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill. Yes, for some reason, our Congresswoman stepped in to endorse one candidate over the other—the other being at that time, the current interim Mayor Ted Gamble—the guy supported by the independent thinker District Leaders as well as the guy who won the majority vote of our Town Council in January 2024.

Historical throwback, a bit of back story: In November 2022, we, meaning Ted & Jenni Gamble and this writer included, campaigned, canvassed, worked social media and supported Rep Mikie Sherrill.

Photo at Bloomfield train station November 8, 2022

Returning back to this recent year, by April, 2024, Mayoral Candidate Mundell had the public support of Rep Mikie Sherrill. And it was not just one announcement. Rep Sherrill enjoyed ongoing participation in Mundell’s campaign.

Above, NJGLOBE article April 08 2024 David Wildstein

Below, candidate’s social media

The meat of this story: the electioneering at the early voting site at Watsessing

On June 1^st, at an announced rally at the Mundell campaign HQ, after pumping up some egos, Rep Sherrill left the rally, but the rally goers in campaign gear headed down Washington Street, turned on Lackawanna Place, and then approached the polls at Watsessing. At this point, a flagrant violation of campaign regs occurred with our ASM Michael Venezia engaged with belligerence that he had the 1st amendment right to do so. For at least one hour, Venezia argued with poll workers and his crew insisted upon entering the voting area with their campaign shirts. One rally goer removed her shirt, voted in her bra, and took a selfie.

The GOP Mayoral Candidate, David Tucker, brought a complaint to the Assembly Ethics Committee. The complaint listed electioneering at a polling place and disorderly persons offense. On September 17, 2024, the Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards of the Assembly dismissed this significant, well-documented case of electioneering at the Watsessing early voting poll on June 1^st 2024. The Committee stated it was not in their jurisdiction to judge Venezia’s behavior.

The Committee did happen to mention that in spite of both Venezia and Tucker’s statements including calling local Bloomfield Police and the Essex County Sheriff to the scene, neither law enforcement agency had a record of the event—that’s what these law enforcement agencies stated to the Assembly Ethics Committee.

How did the Essex County Sheriff not have any record of this event? The complainants also stated at the hearing that several calls were made to Essex County requesting any video cam footage at Watsessing and it was stated that there is no such footage, and “if we did have it, you would not get it.” (Statement by Candidate Russ Mollica at September 17^th assembly hearing.)

In summary, this violation of election law witnessed by many and set into a complaint at the Assembly Ethics Committee:
has yet to be covered in main-stream media;
was dismissed by the State Assembly Ethics as "not in their jurisdiction;”
The Essex County Sheriff & Bloomfield PD came onto this scene on June 1st, yet both offices deny having any record.

From X formerly Twitter October 31, 2024

On October 31, 2024, we once again reached out calling for witness to the June 1^st Watsessing Poll violations.

November, Election day

Finally, on November 5, 2024, the entitled candidate was elected and interim Mayor Ted Gamble was unceremoniously dismissed by email on November 18 by The County Power. That evening Assemblyman Michael Venezia swore in now the next Interim Mayor Jenny Mundell and Council Woman Monica Charris-Tabares.

What does the future hold for local Bloomfield Candidates?

The County Power and the State Power brokers won, but for June 2025, it remains to be seen if one or all three candidates—Venezia, Mundell, and Charris-Tabares—may be in an uncontested primary.

How many folks have the guts to get their petitions going early in 2025 for the June challenge?

How much money and force will The County Power and State Power brokers spend and use this time?

And in the meantime, will witnesses attest to the June 1, 2024 electioneering at a polling place and disorderly persons conduct? Please reply to The Bloomfield Chronicles bloomfieldchronicles@gmail with tips and information.

Additional photos & info

caption...Early view of the neighborhood described in the story. From Lantern Slides

Historical Society of Bloomfield | Photo Gallery | Town Improvement Association (TIA) Lantern Slides |

Washington Street

Mundell for Mayor Campaign Headquarters, April 2024

Candidate’s social media

This writer’s social media, June 1, 2024

https://www.nj.gov/oag/dcj/agguide/2022_Law-Enforcement-Guidance-for-Elections.pdf

Electioneering Law at a polling place and disorderly persons offence

This writer’s social media June 1, 2024

June 1st Rally

Rep Mikie Sherrill and Candidate Mundell

The March

Assemblyman Mike Venezia and Councilwoman Sarah Cruz outside of Watsessing early voting with other rallygoers in campaign gear

This writer’s social media

Character limits on Twitter accounts necessitate shortcuts, so JM and MV in the social media post below refer to Jenny Mundell and Mike Venezia.

Campaign gear worn at rally at HQ June 1, 2024

NJ Election Law Enforcement (ELEC) Filing for purple T-shirts $2666 and $888 in expenditures benefiting the candidate.

The County Power, partial list:
LeRoy Jones, Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr.

Thank you for reading!

And thank you in advance for participating in the free and fair June Primary election with better ballots that we plan and hope to have for our next Governor, Assembly Members and local town councils all across New Jersey in 2025.

Joan