Several of today's non-partisan municipal races may potentially effect the results of key races for the Legislature — next month and in November.
In the eighth district, candidates backed by South Jersey Democrats swept local contests in Evesham, a swing town in increasingly competitive Burlington County. With a massive — and high tech — grass roots campaign, former Philadelphia Eagles Assistant Coach Randy Brown upset the longtime incumbent, Republican Gus Tamburro. Assemblyman Francis Bodine, who switched to the Democratic Party after Republicans dumped him from their ticket, backed the Brown slate, which won control of the Council as well. Bodine is running for the State Senate against County Clerk Phil Haines.
In the 33rd district, two Hoboken Councilmembers who support Brian Stack for State Senate over the choice of retiring Senate Majority Leader (and Hudson County Democratic Chairman) Bernard Kenny, were re-elected.
In District 14, West Windsor Councilman Frank Gambatese, Jr., an ally of Democratic Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (and the son of the Democratic Mayor of South Brunswick) was defeated in his bid for re-election by a candidate supported by GOP Assemblyman/State Senate candidate Bill Baroni and the two Republican Assembly candidates.
All four candidates supported by Camden Democratic Municipal Chair Dana Redd won races for the Camden City Council. Redd is the Democratic candidate for State Senate in the fifth district, where Wayne Bryant — under indictment on twenty counts of corruption — is retiring.
