36th District in '09 could be a battle, but Schaer and Hipp stay low for now

MINNEAPOLIS - The potential players in next year’s 36th District Assembly contest are staying low at the moment.

According to sources, Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic) is likely to run for his Assembly spot again rather than pursue the mayor’s seat that the convicted Sammy Rivera left vacant.

But at the moment, he remains coy about his plans.

"The filing deadline is Sept. 12th," he said of the Passaic mayor’s contest. "I’m not prepared to make a statement."

His district mate, Assemblyman Fred Scalera (D-Nutley), definitely intends to run for re-election in a district containing portions of three counties, that is nearly 54 percent concentrated in Bergen.

The big question on the GOP side is whether Rutherford Mayor Joe Hipp decides to challenge Schaer and Scalera.

Despite buzz at the Republican National Convention around a Hipp candidacy, the freshman mayor says he has not considered running for the Assembly.

"I haven’t had any discussions with the party," he said. "My running for the Assembly is not on the table at all. Look, you never want to say ‘no’ to helping out the party, but I’m actually surprised I’m getting this phone call. I had a meeting with Chairman (Bob) Yudin yesterday and the subject never came up."

According to Republican sources, a possible GOP ticket to challenge Scalera and Schaer could include Hipp, and businessman Carmen Pio Costa, who came close in his challenge last year, "But has since not been seen," according to Scalera.