Roselle mayor backs McIver in NJ-10 special

Newark city council president likely to win party support in Union

By Joey Fox, May 09 2024 2:52 pm

Newark City Council President LaMonica McIver picked up a new endorsement today from Roselle Mayor Donald Shaw, giving her a foothold in Union County as she runs in the special Democratic primary for the 10th congressional district.

McIver is one of several candidates either already running or likely to run for the majority-Black, deep-blue district, which was held by Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark) until his death last month.

“The late Congressman Donald Payne Jr. had a special place in his heart for the Borough of Roselle,” Shaw said in a statement. “I know he would want us to continue to move CD 10 forward in unity. I believe LaMonica McIver will do just that. Her track record of showing up for the people she serves is how I believe she will serve the entire Congressional District 10.”

McIver, like Payne, has her political base in Newark, where she represents the Central Ward on the city council. Prominent Essex County Democrats – including county Democratic Chair LeRoy Jones and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka – are supporting her, and she has already received the official Essex Democratic slogan on the primary ballot.

But while Essex County makes up a majority of the 10th district, Union and Hudson Counties both have a substantial presence as well, and each have a prospective candidate in the race: Linden Mayor Derek Armstead for Union, Hudson County Commissioner Jerry Walker (D-Jersey City) for Hudson.

Armstead is not especially popular among top Union Democrats, though, and McIver is favored to receive party support in the county instead of him. (The party endorsement will be decided by a vote of the eight Union municipal chairs from the 10th district; Assemblyman Reginald Atkins is the Democratic municipal chairman in Roselle.)

Party endorsements will mean less for this election than they often do, since only one office will be on the ballot and thus the county organizational line won’t be in effect. But, of course, any endorsement from outside of McIver’s home base will help introduce her to local voters with whom she has never interacted before – a critical advantage in the two-month sprint before the July 16 primary.

Also in the running for the seat are two other Essex Democrats, former East Orange Councilwoman Brittany Claybrooks and state economic development official Darryl Godfrey.