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I object!

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I don't know about that. Connelly is no slouch when it comes to being a dapper Dan. To him 'dress down' is a two piece suit.

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+1. Say what you will about Waterman, his hat collection is unsurpassed.

Without question, Jerry Walker is fielding the sharpest dressing team.

Jersey City mayoral candidate Jerry Walker announced today that three City Council candidates have joined his ticket for May?s city election, including the sitting vice president of the Board of Education.

Sterling Waterman, elected to the school board in 2010 and formerly the board?s president, will run at-large, along with attorney and former city attorney Sean M. Connelly and city cop Ram?n ?Ray? Regalado.

?I am very excited to announce these honorable citizens as part of my team,? Walker said in a statement from his campaign. ?They all agree to work and focus on my four point plan: to educate our youth, to bring down crime, to hold real estate interests accountable and to give average city residents more economic opportunity.?

Waterman is a former ally of Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop, who is also running for mayor on May 14. Regalado has previously said that he planned to run for mayor.

In the statement, Walker?s trio of at-large candidates blasted the city?s ?unbearable taxes? and ?demeaning quality of life? and pledged to make ?positive changes.?

?The city is going in the wrong direction and becoming too expensive for the middle class and working people to survive,? Connelly said. ?As council member at large, I will fight to preserve our neighborhoods throughout the entire city, so that all people of all income levels can afford to live stay and enjoy our city.?

Yes if you just keep saying that Nidia Lopez isn't a tax cheat then it must become true eventually, right?

She paid thousands of dollars in PENALTIES for cheating on her taxes - last I checked they don't make people pay penalties for doing the right thing. She only filed "income taxes" in Florida even though she spent 90% of her time in NJ and 10% of her time in FL. Florida doesn't have an income tax, which means that she didn't pay any income taxes there, so it's not like she paying taxes only they went to the wrong place. Cut through the fluff and it turns out she lied so that she could pay no income tax to Florida or New Jersey. Florida does collect property tax, however, but rather than pay her fair share for her home there she went ahead and lied on that one too so she could get a deduction as if that was her primary residence. She also lied multiple times that her home in Florida was her primary residence to get preferential interest rates on her mortgage. Oh, and she voted by absentee ballot in a Florida election two years after moving to New Jersey and voting in local elections in Jersey City.

If it is was any one thing I could write it off as an honest mistake. She cheated on NJ taxes 2001-2009 (9 mistakes), cheated on her Florida property tax 2001-2009 (9 more mistakes), lied on four mortgage refinancings (4 more mistakes), and voted in an election in Florida two years after moving to NJ and voting in Jersey City elections (1 more mistake). 23 mistakes over the course of a decade? Either she's a complete idiot with no business getting elected or a fraud. What if she is doing the same now and we find out just after Mayor Fulop has been sworn into office? Is that really a risk you want him taking? Not me.

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OK youre becoming a broken record on something a bunch of posters have provided proof against. I dont think you followed the logic layed out. Feel free to reread it.

Personally, i supported robinhood. Maybe not as a 40 story tower, but ill believe thats going to happen when i see it. It would certainly be nice if it had a real park being added too. Again, i doubt anything will happen in that space within the next few years...

As for levin, personally i think levin represents a lot of talk without real action over the past decade. As for his talk... That doesnt seem to exist anymore now that hes joined Healy & Co. If nobody else was running in ward e then i would consider voting for him, but sandy gave me some perspective.... While im sure dan was busy putting out a press release that "hurricanes are bad," i saw Osborne running around helping neighbors and organizing greater relief efforts... That earned her a lot of respect in my book

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Guys, this isn?t even close.

Like many, I was skeptical when Steve Fulop first showed up on the scene. As a long time resident, I found it hard to believe that here now was a politician who was willing to do the right thing. In fact I voted for his opponent (Junior Maldonado) when he first ran for office. We were all surprised when Steve won. I like Junior ? still do, and guess what, even Junior now supports Steve.

Steve has amassed a staggering record of achievement. Take a look for yourself. And, speak with Steve ? he is very approachable. He has proven himself to be a man of character (joining the Marines after 9/11, serving the community in countless ways, and being a responsive and articulate Councilman). His heart is in the right place ? but it is not only that. He knows how to get things done. Of course the Healy team doesn?t like him ? he keeps exposing their soft underbelly (and Healy and his team have a lot of ?splaining? to do). Steve has fought the good fight to improve our schools. Say what you like about our schools, but if you look today you will see that Jersey City now has a world-class schools superintendent and a highly skilled and highly motivated school board. They are working hard to fix the schools and we are seeing a glimmer of hope from their efforts. This would not have happened without Steve (and as unbelievable as it may be, Team Healy objects to Steve Fulop?s efforts to improve our schools). .

I am a Jersey City citizen who has been around a long time and has seen first-hand the crap that goes on in City Hall. I have paid attention and I see the choices before us.

It is clear to me that Steve Fulop will be a mayor that we can be proud of.

Jersey City 2013 election: mayoralty, all City Council seats up for grabs

By Terrence T. McDonald/The Jersey Journal
February 01, 2013 at 4:06 PM

In just over three months, Jersey City voters will head to the polls for the city?s quadrennial city election, when the mayoralty and all nine City Council seats are up for grabs.

Whatever the results, there are certain to be changes on the council. One current member is running for mayor, leaving the Ward E seat up for grabs, while members representing Wards A, B and D said they will not seek re-election.

The marquee race is for mayor, with longtime political nemeses Mayor Jerramiah Healy and Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop are going head-to-head for the chance to govern the state?s second-largest city.

Healy, a former municipal judge and councilman, is hoping for a third full term. Voters first tapped him for mayor in a special November 2004 election after Glenn Cunningham?s death, and he won election the following May to his first full term. He won again handily in 2009.

Fulop first won election to the council in 2005 ? defeating a Healy man who has since endorsed Fulop ? and was re-elected in a 2009 landslide. Fulop, a U.S. Marine and former Goldman Sachs trader, is making his first bid to be the city?s top executive.

Fulop, who has been planning his bid for the mayoralty for years, is sitting on a roughly $832,000 war chest, giving him an edge over the mayor. Healy, who only announced his re-election intentions in February, raised just under $300,000 as of October 2012, but new figures from January 2013 show he boosted his fundraising significantly, outpacing Fulop for the final quarter of last year.

After a sleepy summer, the Healy/Fulop contest shifted into gear this fall, with Healy nabbing endorsements of the Jersey City teachers union, Hudson County Freeholder Eliu Rivera, and a group of Latino pastors. Fulop, meanwhile, won the nods of a group of African-American pastors, some high-profile Latino leaders and Freeholder Bill O?Dea.

Though the Healy and Fulop face-off will surely dominate election news, others will likely jump in the race. State Sen. Sandra B. Cunningham, widow of the late former mayor Glenn D. Cunningham, announced on Jan. 18 that she plans to seek re-election in 2013 to her Senate gig, making her entry into the campaign, long a rumor, unlikely.

Jerry Walker, the former St. Anthony High School and Seton Hall University basketball star, announced in early January that he is challenging Healy as well, naming education as his top priority. Walker runs Team Walker, a popular afterschool program that receives funding from the local school district.

CITY COUNCIL

The City Council has three at-large council reps: Peter Brennan, Rolando Lavarro and Viola Richardson. All three have announced they will seek re-election, Brennan and Richardson to their fourth terms and Lavarro to his first full term.

Brennan and Richardson have served on the council since 2001. Richardson is the former Ward F rep who was promoted to her at-large seat in a wild November 2011 special election that saw 17 candidates running for two spots.

Lavarro, who ran on a ticket with Richardson during that campaign, was the other winner of that election. He is running on Fulop?s ticket to remain an at-large councilman, while Brennan and Richardson are running with Healy.

Omar Perez, a former aide to Healy and corrupt former councilman Mariano Vega, is running on Healy?s ticket as an at-large candidate. Perez ran in the 2011 special election, coming in ninth out of 17 candidates.

On Fulop's slate, Daniel Rivera, a former president of the Roberto Clemente Little League of Jersey City, and the Rev. Joyce Watterman of the Continuous Flow Christian Center will run at-large. They are both new to Jersey City politics.

In Ward A, which encompasses Greenville, Councilman Michael Sottolano is not seeking a third term. Former schools superintendent Charles T. Epps Jr. is running to replace him. A former assemblyman, this would be his first bid for council, and he?s running on Healy?s ticket. Epps will face Frank Gajewski, a former police chief, who is running on Fulop?s slate.

Ward B Councilman David Donnelly, after previously announcing that he joined Fulop?s slate, opted in January to back out of the election. Donnelly joined the council as a mayoral appointment in 2009, and then won a special election in 2010 to remain in the seat until this July.

Donnelly aide Khemraj "Chico" Ramchal, a Hudson County Improvement Authority employee, will run on Fulop's ticket in Donnelly's place. Ramchal is an unpaid aide to Freeholder Bill O'Dea, who has endorsed Fulop's ticket. He was formerly a part-time worker for the Hudson County Sheriff?s Office, but resigned soon after announced his council bid, according to an HCSO spokesman.

Healy's pick for Ward B, which encompasses the West Side, is county employee and Dem activist Gerald Meyers, who formerly ran the Lincoln Park Little League.

Ward B activist Esther Wintner, who ran in the 2010 special election and lost to Donnelly, has also signaled her intention to run. Formerly a harsh administration critic, Wintner has lately tossed most of her barbs at Fulop instead.

Ward C Councilwoman Nidia Lopez announced on Jan. 29 that she will seek re-election to her second term. Lopez is a former Healy ally who now backs Fulop, and she will face JP Morgan analyst Janet Chevres. Chevres is running on Healy's ticket in Ward C, which Healy supporters have vowed to "take back" from Lopez.

Meanwhile, former Jersey City cop Rich Boggiano, who made a strong in last year?s at-large special election, said he plans to run in Ward C, which encompasses Journal Square. Boggiano, head of Journal Square?s Hilltop Neighborhood Association, is unaffiliated with a ticket

In Ward D, newsstand owner Michael Yun, who heads the Central Avenue Special Improvement District, is running to replace Ward D Councilman Bill Gaughan. Gaughan has been Ward D?s council rep for nearly two decades, and announced in early January that he doesn't plan to run for a sixth term.

Yun was the first candidate to have his candidacy certified by the City Clerk?s office.

The Healy camp had hoped Assemblyman Sean Connors would run to succeed Gaughan, but Connors, who endorsed Healy in September 2012, retracted his endorsement two months later in a move that stunned and angered Healy loyalists and even some in Connors? camp. He then joined Fulop's slate as its candidate in Ward D, which encompasses The Heights.

Ward E ? the Downtown, Fulop?s base ? finds community activist Dan Levin running on Healy?s ticket, much to the surprise of some of his supporters. Levin, who called on Healy to resign after the massive 2009 corruption sweep, came in fourth when he ran for mayor that year and came in seventh out of 17 candidates when he ran for an at-large council seat in the 2011 special election.

Fulop, meanwhile, has tapped activist Candice Osborne to run for his current seat.

The only announced candidate in Ward F, which includes the Bergen-Lafayette section and a portion of Downtown, is Ward F Councilwoman Diane Coleman, who will run for re-election on Fulop's slate. Coleman, who runs Building an Empire, a nonprofit that connects needy residents with social services, won in a November 2012 special election for a term that ends June 30.

She defeated Michele Massey, who was appointed to the seat in December 2011 after Richardson became a councilwoman at large. Massey, who heads the Jackson Hill Main Street Special Improvement District, told The Jersey Journal after her election defeat that she may run again, and she was seen after her loss with members of the administration at a Ward F event touting new crime-fighting initiatives.

Another possible candidate who may be familiar to voters is Imtiaz Syed, who came in eighth out of 17 candidates in last November?s special at-large council election. He has filed campaign documents indicating a 2013 run.

The city election is set for May 14, 2013. A runoff will be held June 11 for any race in which no candidate receives over 50 percent of the vote.

Candidates interesting in running need to hand in petitions by 4 p.m. on Monday, March 11, 2013. Mayoral and at-large council candidates need valid signatures of 1,331 registered Jersey City voters ? one percent of the total number of registered voters in the November 2012 General Election ? while Ward A candidates need to hand in 248 valid signatures of registered voters; Ward B candidates, 202; Ward C, 195; Ward D, 189; Ward E, 237; and Ward F, 261.

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... y_2013_election_a_pr.html

So what you are saying is that it's ok for Nidia Lopez to cheat on her taxes because 99% of people cheat on something. It's especially ok to be corrupt when that person is part of Fulop's team.

Also, Lopez voted for robinhood. So much for her great voting record for the residents of ward C.

So do you support Dan Levin even though he's on Healy's ticket? If not then maybe you should change your name to LimpiarElAnyoneNotOnWunderkindFulop'sTeam

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If you examine any multi-term politician in America (probably the world) you will find that 99% of them have a skeleton in their closet. I guess the same goes for non-politicians, except that they arent subjecting themselves to investigation. Since nobody is squeaky clean, and even if they are it doesnt mean they are the best representative, you have to cast your ballot based on their voting record - are they voting in a manner that appears to be in the best interests of residents or are their decisions indicative of allegiance to an outside party?

Ive never lived in ward c, but I have attended a number of council meetings, and at nearly every meeting I've witnessed Lopez vote in a manner that appears to be in the best interests of Ward C. If I could vote for her... I likely would. I would definitely chose her over whats-her-name on the Healy ticket, thats for sure.

Nobody is infallible, but when faced between Fulop or Healy it is a no brainer.

To throw a lil conjecture in to this and speculate why Healy wasn't arrested during Bid Rig... because if you watch the videos from the Dwek meetings he appears completely complicit with Dwek giving money to Shaw to funnel to him? if you keep in mind the political circumstances at the time, the investigation was built up by Christie just prior to his leaving the AG?s office and announcing that he would run for governor. The HCDO was in the early stages of [another] civil war; and Healy and Corzine by this point were not on good terms, nor were the JCDO and HCDO (Matsikoudis (Healy/JCDO) and O'Brien/Gaughan (DeGise/HCDO) were in a fist fight at the Borgata). Cleaning house by arresting and removing Healy, the head of the JCDO, from office and arresting Guy/Demellier (the movers at the HCDO) would of given the democrats in Hudson County the opportunity to make peace and truly mobilize the vote against Christie in NJ?s 2nd largest democratic stronghold (Corzine beat Forester in HC by 3 to 1 but only beat Christie by 2.6 to 1). Leaving the ?major power brokers? of HC in place essentially helped Christie win the governorship (by less than 100k votes). It?s all conjecture but I believe that theory is pretty widely held; it is purportedly the reason why Dick Codey introduced legislation back in 2009 that would ?bar NJ?s attorney general and county prosecutors from running for elected office until 2 years after they leave those law enforcement posts.? After all, at the time, Codey said "It's good public policy to know that those in charge of criminal investigations aren't pursuing targets that will enhance their imminent political goals."

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I didn't call you stupid but you called yourself that. So be it, no one knows you better than you.

Like I said, you don't like the candidate, don't vote for that person. You still have free choice to vote for whomever you chose. Take one from Col. A, 2 from Col. B & so on. You are getting quite tiresome. You sound just like a Heely drone who constantly repeat the same mantra over & over & over & over & over till everyone is numb.

And just for the record, I remember Gangemi.

This has EVERYTHING to do with corruption.

cor?rup?tion
/k??r?pSH?n/
Noun
1. Dishonest or fraudulent conduct by those in power, typically involving bribery.
2. The action of making someone or something morally depraved or the state of being so.
3. Nidia "I go to Florida on vacation a few times a year so I'll just stop paying taxes for a decade until I get caught" Lopez.

I have to admit that all of the Fulop zombies are one of the reasons I am afraid to see him win. I'm pretty sure the last thing Jersey City needs is a bunch of elitists who think their Wunderkind is infallible, but I'm guessing most of you don't remember Gerry McCann.

And again, I'm probably going to vote for Fulop, but maybe if you look down your nose and call me stupid some more that will lock in my vote for him!

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If this is your only major gripe, which is telling me that you are probably that lunchroom monitor that Heely is running then don't push the button for Lopez. It's as simple as that. And by the way, Heely is the one who brought Nidia on board & if you don't think that he didn't know, you are not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

There is no single standard for determining residency under the law. It depends why you are asking. There is a different standard for residency when it comes to owing income taxes than there is for where one is eligible to vote. The tests for determining eligibility to run for office or get a marriage license or buy car insurance may be different from both.

For taxes it is largely a matter of literally counting days in each location and the person's plans for the future are irrelevant. For running for office a person's intent to move may be determinative.

This is complicated. People can make mistakes in perfectly good faith and generally when a mistake is made, past taxes are paid.

This has NOTHING to do with corruption.

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Too easy to say. I don't actually think Jerry is stupid, I've heard him speak, and I've heard a lot worse. He was also too cagey to get caught by the feds. Lazy? Probably, but guys like him should not be underestimated. Stupid criminals hold guns not pens, and their toll on society is far less, notwithstanding the few victims who happen to get really unlucky.

If Jerry was smarter he's be on Wall Street where the really smart criminals go, but he found his niche here. However, I'm sure plenty of his soldiers are dumb as wood, like the ones that went to prison. That's really the amazing part of this election, that a guy who had so many of his closest allies convicted can still be a viable candidate in JC. Lazy voters indeed...

If the last decade of a person's existence is a decent indicator of character are you going to vote for Nidia Lopez?

1. Tax cheat - She didn't pay NJ income tax 2001-2009. Nice to know my taxes are a little higher so I could pay for a free loader like her.
2. Voter fraud - Voted in a FL election via absentee ballot in 2003 while a NJ resident. Maybe she should change her motto to "Vote early, vote often."
3. Mortgage fraud - Refinanced her mortgage four times claiming her Florida residence was her primary residence to get a lower rate even though she was living in NJ.

These are facts testified to by her under oath.

I never said I was a Healy supporter. I did say I will probably vote for Fulop, although I'm still calling myself undecided because a lot can happen in three months. Can you say with a straight face that Fulop made a good move adding her to his ticket with the facts above? Makes him come off as a sell-out and maybe even desperate. Why else would a guy so confident of winning add such a loser to his ticket? Sorry if that hurts your feelings but he screwed up. The "pledge" nonsense was only insult to injury. It's like a little kid promising she'll clean her room in eight years if you just let her eat candy today.

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WRONG! Healy's first mayoral campaign slogan was "Fighting Corruption." If you dont think thats some bull$hit! then I'm willing to bet that you probably already got conned in to buying that bridge and are hoping you can unload it. Only problem is, if there is no sucker that you can sell it to it means youre the biggest sucker.

I dont know what I'm going to have for breakfast tomorrow let along what someone else is going to do in 8 years but if the last decade of a person's existence is a decent indicator of character, I'd take Fulop over Healy 100 times to zero.

A lot of people like to criticize Healy and his team as being "morons." Unfortunately, while they may be inept at running a city, they are great at helping themselves and their friends at your expense. The following quote sums up perfectly what you are doing if you support Healy come May...

"Lazy people who don't want to work for a living have found out that if you can get yourself elected, you can make a lot of money, without doing a lot of work," he [former north bergen aide] said. "People living in brownstones in Jersey City and Hoboken making a million dollars a year allow somebody to run their towns that wouldn't be able to work in the mailroom of where they work. Maybe they are lazy too.".

That is where the race stands.

Seems weird Viola would run with Healy. I had heard she was furious he wouldn't back her when she ran for at-large in the special election. Wonder what it took to get that done?

From the judge's ruling on Nidia Lopez's residency in Jersey City. The issue isn't her residency but that she is either a habitual liar (again, I don't put much stock in her "pledge") or she is serially incompetent. I'll probably hold my nose and vote for Fulop (lesser evil) but I can't understand how someone committed to integrity can have a person like this on his ticket:

"Whether intentionally or otherwise, Lopez did not pay New Jersey taxes, either personal or business, between 2001-2009. She did not reinstate her corporation in New Jersey after her return in 2001. She did not apply for a New Jersey drivers' license. She may or may not have voted by absentee ballot in a Florida election after she moved back to New Jersey in 2001. She represented her Florida house to be her permanent home for the purpose of multiple refinancing and to obtain yearly homestead exemptions. None of these actions, whatever the motivation for them, is excused or condoned by this decision."

http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/files/lopez120409.pdf

It doesn't bother me that she once ran with Healy when he was essentially unopposed. She broke with him. Besides, the issue is not supporting Healy in 2009, before the FBI sting and the four past lethargic years, it's supporting Healy now.

Unless there is some personal or financial connection, I really can't understand how anyone can endorse a third full (and fourth overall) Healy term. I expect there will not be enough voters beholden to Healy to beat a real challenge.

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She claimed herself as a resident of Florida.

As for the judge, you might want to explore how many of those judges owe their position due to their support for the HCDO.

I'm sorry I just can't equate Nidia Lopez with a change in the status quo. 4 years ago she was on Healy's ticket (a lot of Fulop zombies didn't think she was so upstanding then). She fibbed about her residency and cheated on her taxes.

I think it's great to see a community leader such as Nidia Lopez join Fulop's (another great community leader) ticket.

The fact that they are pledging to stick to term limits proves that this group is all about changing the status quo. Bravo on both the pledge and selection of Nidia Lopez.

Try to sugar coat it however you want, but Nidia Lopez cheated on her taxes. She was a resident of NJ but didn't pay NJ income taxes - that's cheating. She only paid after she got caught. When she did pay she had to pay a penalty and interest - because she cheated. Here is the JJ from 2009:

Embattled Jersey City Councilwoman Nidia Lopez hasn't filed taxes in New Jersey for the last three years.

Instead, according to the transcript of a deposition provided to The Jersey Journal last night, Lopez filed federal taxes as a Florida resident in 2006 and 2007 and filed there for an extension for filing her 2008 federal taxes.


Criticizing Fulop does not mean Healy isn't a crook. The difference is that Healy has not based his entire existence on sunshine and transparency, so when Fulop puts a tax cheat on his ticket it says he's willing to forsake his principles to win.

This matters for term limits because a "pledge" is only as good as the person making it. Do you really think Lopez, Fulop, or any of the others on that ticket will actually honor their word 4 or 8 years from now if it's not convenient? If you believe that I've got a bridge to sell you.

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Lopez didn't cheat on her taxes, taxes were paid... as for her residency, the judicial system decided that she was ok on that front as well.

I'm glad she is on Fulop's ticket. Personally, I think she has represented the city responsibily over the past few years

It would not need to be legally binding if the elected officials voluntarily commit to honor them. If a politician did not honor his commitment he would enjoy non-voluntary term limits at the ballot box.

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Thanks, I found a reference to that case last night but didn't find the actual case. Interesting. Looks like the state needs to revise the act so that term limits can be added by citizens if desired.

If the president and nj governor both have term limits, then there is no reason that towns shouldn't be allowed to set term limits on its executive branch as well. I'm sure if Fulop wins in May that the HCDO legislators would be happy to propose the faulkner act be amended to allow term limits

I'm getting really tired of the attempt to cover up the rampant corruption in the Healy administration with accusations that Fulop is more of the same. It's clear to even those who make the comparison that the charge is cynical and ridiculous.

Many people with residences in more than one state seek to establish their permanent residence for tax purposes in the state with the lowest taxes. It was not illegal. It was not unethical. It was at worst, politically unwise. It's up to the voters whether or not it is important.

Getting back to term limits, for Jersey City I think this is important. We have a history of patronage politics which corrupts the political process and discourages voters. We don't want our leaders or their appointees entrenched. (Ahem.) We want fresh perspectives and energized officials whose number one priority is not keeping their jobs, but serving the city.

Traditionally I have been anti-term limits. I think the voters should choose. I would say that 3 term limit would be better than two. The arguments for and against limits are both compelling.

A recent discussion though has me almost willing to change my anti-term limit stance. For me you might very well be losing the knowledge and experience of a good elected official.
However, if incumbents benefit from lower voter turn out then we are creating a culture where career politicians want to create apathy and don't want to engage the community. This is a story that seems to ring true in jersey city.

If pledging to limit your terms even if it can't be legally enforced is coupled with an active culture of helping younger/newer leaders to get ready to run is what will encourage more voter participation then I see this as something that is very positive in JC and I can get behind.

All you Fulop supporters, don't faint, I am not so staunch that I can't sometimes change my position.