Inside New Jersey’s Most Competitive Races to Watch on June 10
As the gubernatorial race captures headlines, intense down-ballot contests in New Jersey’s largest counties are shaping the state’s future
Legislative District 33- Democratic primary
Welcome to Hudson County, where rivalries run strong and the enemy of your enemy can be your friend. Hudson County’s Democratic Organization (HDCO) is heavily influenced by chairman Craig Guy and State Senator and Union City Mayor Brian Stack. The county machine has thrown its support behind incumbent Assemblyman Gabriel Rodriguez and Larry Wainstein.
Stack, a longtime archrival of former State Senator and North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco, faces a challenge from Sacco’s own slate: Tony Hector and Frank Alonso. Meanwhile, the HDCO’s endorsement of Sherrill in the gubernatorial primary has sparked an unusual alliance between Sacco and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop.
A powerful force in the region, Stack is known for his robust ground game. Union City alone has nine early voting sites. Stack has sent each resident in the legislative district a sign to hang in their windows in support of his endorsed candidates. Stack provides his constituents with a personal cell phone number to contact for constituent services. Union City remains the epicenter of the old-school machine politics for which New Jersey is famous.
Edison Mayoral Race- Democratic primary
Edison is a large community of more than 100,000 in Central Jersey that is majority Asian, with three quarters of that being of South Asian origin. The community is at the center of a blockbuster primary to be the next mayor. Incumbent Sam Joshi and his slate of assembly candidates (Dima, Patel, and Kentos) face a strong challenge from Lav Patel and his own slate (Mehta, Chen, and DeAmorin). Patel is endorsed by and allied with Steven Fulop, while Joshi runs with the support of the official party leadership in Middlesex County. Patel is challenging Joshi on issues of public safety, fiscal discipline, and limiting cannabis businesses in the town. Recent brawls at a mall in Edison have become a key issue in this race. The yard sign warfare between the two campaigns is the most aggressive anywhere in the state. It is impossible to drive around Edison without spotting dozens of large signs on every major road.
Legislative District 32- Democratic primary
That’s not all in Hudson County. An intriguing six-way contest is taking shape in Jersey City and Hoboken, where the winners are virtually guaranteed seats in the New Jersey Assembly. This district, which includes the Jersey City Waterfront and Hoboken, has historically leaned toward anti-establishment candidates.
Incumbent Assemblywoman Jessica Ramirez (D-Jersey City) has aligned herself with Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and is running alongside Jersey City Councilman Yousef Saleh under the “Democrats for Change” slogan. Meanwhile, the Hudson County Democratic Organization (HDCO), which endorsed Mikie Sherrill in the gubernatorial race, is backing its own slate: Director of Public Works Crystal Fonseca and Hoboken Public Library Director Jennie Pu.
A third slate features Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, who previously challenged Rob Menendez Jr. in the 2024 primary for New Jersey’s 8th congressional district. Bhalla is allied with Katie Brennan, a former Murphy administration official who has clashed with the Hudson County machine multiple times in recent years.
Legislative District 37- Democratic primary
This legislative district includes Hackensack, Bogota, Ridgefield Park, Teaneck, Tenafly, Englewood, Englewood Cliffs, Fort Lee, Leonia, and Palisades Park. Incumbent Assemblywomen Ellen Park (D-Englewood Cliffs) and Shama Haider (D-Tenafly) have the backing of the Bergen County Democratic Party, which is also supporting Congressman Joshua Gottheimer in the gubernatorial primary. The two incumbents face challenges from two other slates.
Tenafly Councilman Daniel Park and Teaneck Democratic Committee member and attorney Tamar Warburg are running together on a slate aligned with Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop. A third slate includes Emil “Yitz” Stern and Rosemary Hernandez Carroll, running under the slogan “Together for Bergen LD-37.”
The district has large Korean American and Orthodox Jewish populations.
Two Korean Americans are running on separate slates: incumbent Ellen Park and challenger Daniel Park. Meanwhile, Tamar Warburg is seeking to become the first Orthodox Jewish woman elected to the legislature. She has actively recruited members of the Orthodox community to the Teaneck Democratic Committee, increasing Orthodox Jewish membership from two to eighteen of the forty-six elected members.
Warburg has faced criticism within the Orthodox community for her alliance with Fulop, who has expressed reservations about codifying the IHRA definition of antisemitism. Fulop, who is Jewish, has stated he “would not veto this bill” if passed but “does not support it because it does not mitigate the issue and only targets the committee more.” In contrast, Warburg and Daniel Park are firm supporters of the IHRA bill. Some have cited worry that Stern, who is also Orthodox and running on the third slate, may split the Orthodox Jewish vote. Others have claimed that the community could vote for both Orthodox Jewish candidates (as each district elects two members) and is not tied to any particular slate.
Legislative District 31- Democratic Primary
This district includes Bayonne, Jersey City, and Kearny. Yes, another intense showdown in Hudson County: Fulop’s Democrats for Change versus the Hudson County Democratic Organization once again. The two incumbents are not running together. Incumbent Barbara McCann Stamato (D-Jersey City) is running alongside Bayonne Councilwoman Jacqueline Weimmer on Steven Fulop’s slate. Meanwhile, incumbent William Sampson (D-Bayonne) is running with Hudson County Commissioner Jerry Walker, backed by the Hudson County machine.
This race offers an intriguing test of incumbency versus machine influence versus mayoral support. Notably, the portion of Jersey City in this district is less anti-establishment than the areas in Legislative District 32 (discussed above).
Legislative District 28- Democratic Primary
This district covers the South and West wards of Newark, Maplewood, Hillside, and SOMA (South Orange and Maplewood). Incumbent Garnet Hall (D-Maplewood) was initially uncertain about running for a second term but ultimately decided to seek re-election on Steven Fulop’s Democrats for Change team.
Meanwhile, the Essex and Union County Democratic parties—both backing Mikie Sherrill in the gubernatorial primary—have endorsed Chigozie Onyema alongside incumbent Cleopatra Tucker (D-Newark). South Orange and Maplewood represent the progressive, anti-establishment core of the district, and Garnet Hall will need strong support there to secure re-election. Whether her incumbency will be enough remains to be seen.
