Fulop tops 2016 Power List | Political Insider

By Agustin C. Torres | The Jersey Journal
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on February 06, 2016 at 7:07 AM

1. Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop is the bartender who mixes the political cocktails in Hudson County and now the Garden State. When he wants to make a point or gain leverage, he serves it straight or "neat," such as his comments favoring a casino in Jersey City -- and his ability to woo Democratic Party support in North Jersey, where most of the votes live and needed in his run for governor.

Yet, at a Monday meeting with local residents Fulop responded to a question revealing his comedic side by saying he was "not actively" seeking the high office.

More than halfway through his term, Fulop has pushed major development in the city and the construction of towers has made its way up the Palisades into Journal Square. Other areas surely targeted for development are McGinley Square and the Marion section. A planned city hall annex on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive is a what-else-can-we-do attempt to attract consumer traffic and some developer interest to the poorer section of the city.

Naturally, the use of tax abatements for prime real estate has ignited a citywide debate. The mayor is also known for pushing progressive policies, such as the expansion of city health insurance to cover transgender workers. Much of his efforts are being copied in other municipalities in New Jersey and in other states.

His weakness is what always plagues Jersey City politicians seeking higher office -- "kryptonite" from the home planet. Fulop's aspirations are seen by critics as a betrayal to his local office, a slap in the city's face. Bolstering the perception of a failed administration is an alleged inability to solve or show interest in tackling classic urban concerns – crime, violent crime, more crime, poverty, quality of life, and more. This is advertising cannon fodder for gubernatorial aspirants but it is doubtful that it would hurt a statewide campaign.

After defeating the administration of Jerramiah Healy in 2013, Fulop received credit by other pols for uniting the Hudson County Democratic Organization. There's no need to tip the bartender. He will receive support from a major-funded super PAC in the 2017 gubernatorial campaign.

The question locals will have to ask is whether the mayor will leave the city better than when he took office?

Read more:  http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2 ... st_political_insider.html