Stephen Sweeney

All fourteen Democratic mayors in Essex County - including Newark Mayor Cory Booker -- today endorsed Richard Codey (D-Roseland) for re-election as Senate President.  The endorsement comes one day after Codey's rival, Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) announced that he had the backing of fourteen of the 23 Democratic State Senators.

Mayors have no voice in the Senate Democratic Caucus, which will choose legislative leadership positions in the upper house, but Codey is seeking to put some pressure on two Essex Democrats, Nia Gill (D-Montclair) and Teresa Ruiz (D-Newark), who were among the Senators who endorsed Sweeney yesterday.

In addition to Booker, Codey won the backing of: East Orange Mayor Robert Bowser, Irvington Mayor Wayne Smith, Orange Mayor Eldridge Hawkins, West Orange Mayor John McKeon, Livingston Mayor Charles August, Bloomfield Mayor Ray McCarthy, Belleville Mayor Ray Kimble, Maplewood Mayor Vic DeLuca, Montclair Mayor Jerry Fried, Livingston Mayor Charles August, Caldwell Mayor Sue Gartland, South Orange Mayor Doug Newman and Roseland Mayor John Arvanities.

The full text of their statement:
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Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford), who announced yesterday that he has the votes to depose Richard Codey (D-Roseland) as Senate President, went to the Senate eight years ago after prevailing in an internal political war in South Jersey.

The Inside Edge first reported political unrest in a deeply divided Gloucester County Democratic organization in early 2000 amidst a feud between Democratic County Chairman Michael Angelini and eight-term State Sen. Raymond Zane (D-Woodbury).  Angelini was backing former Gov. Jim Florio in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senator, while Zane was supporting a political newcomer, a mega millionaire Wall Streeter named Jon Corzine.

The feud between Angelini and Zane began during the 1999 general election.  Democrats were angry with Zane's refusal to back Paulsboro Mayor John Burzichelli in his campaign to oust two Republican Assemblymen: Speaker Jack Collins (R-Elmer) and Gary Stuhltrager (R-East Greenwich).  Political observers had long believed that an informal arrangement existed between the three District 3 legislators; they have not become involved in campaigns against the other for several years.

In retaliation for Zane's actions, some Gloucester County municipalities stripped the Senator of more than $100,000 worth of legal work, and Zane's son, Gloucester County Freeholder Raymond Zane III lost his position as Freeholder Vice President.

The split between the two widened in 2000 when Zane attempted to switch local party organizations from Florio, a former South Jersey Congressman, to Corzine. Zane was heavily criticized when Salem County Democratic Chairman Thomas Pankok went public with allegations that Zane offered campaign contributions to Salem Democrats on behalf of Corzine in exchange for dropping their support of Florio.

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In the last 24 hours: Steve Sweeney appears to have beaten Dick Codey in the race for Senate President; Sheila Oliver looks like she has the votes to become the next Assembly Speaker; and new Quinnipiac poll shows a close race for Governor, with Chris Christie leading Jon Corzine by four percentage points.

PolitickerNJ.com's coverage of today's news:

Governor
Quinnipiac poll has Christie ahead by 4 points as Corzine gets closer
Christie camp highlights Corzine's QPAC negatives
Cryan heartened by poll numbers showing closer race
Webber focuses on Corzine's 39%
Daggett brings out the impersonators again

Senate President
Sweeney has dinner with Cunningham... and Cardwell
Opposition researcher says OLS tipped off Codey
Codey absorbs news of Sweeney's backers, won't give up
Sweeney announces endorsements of majority of Democratic Senators in bid for Senate President
Lesniak: having a Speaker and Senate President from the same county would be 'unprecedented' and 'not good'
Bowser reminded DiVincenzo about the consequences of opposing Codey
Labor group backs Sweeney

Assembly Speaker
Oliver: 'I am the most independent person ever elected'
Coleman not ready to give up on speakership
South Jersey Democrats back Oliver for Speaker
Wisniewski drops bid for Speaker and endorses Oliver

Assembly Minority Leader
DeCroce/Bramnick flex overwhelming support in face of Biondi faction

Legislative Races
40 Assembly candidates seek 'return the Legislature to regular citizens'
FOP releases endorsements

Local
Former Irvington mayor pleads guilty to taking kickbacks
Healy files with ELEC for 2013

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ORANGE - Assemblywoman Sheila Oliver's (D-East Orange) first foray into Essex County politics was as a kamikaze freeholder candidate in the 1990s running on a line with renegade state Sen. Richard Codey (D-Roseland).

Codey won and Oliver lost, and now years later it looks as though Senate President Codey's headed for a leadership defeat in his caucus as Oliver musters support on top of support in her quest to be the first African American woman speaker of the Assembly, but in the process faces a home county in which a Codey defeat could mean civil war.

Oliver has yet to announce the support of any assembly people from Essex County, but she's working on it, while also respecting, she says, political protocol and the reality that Essex County Democratic Chairman Phil Thigpen still stands with Codey.

"I am attempting to ameliorate Essex County; I believe Chairman Thigpen will avert a civil war and at the end of the day Essex County will be together," she insisted, speaking to the stunning news this morning that Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) summoned enough Democratic caucus backing to beat Senate President Codey when the senate reconvenes after the gubernatorial election on Nov. 3rd.

Among the fourteen backers (including Sweeney himself), two senators declaring their support for South Jerseyan Sweeney over Essex County's own Codey are county employees, state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Newark) and state Sen. Nia Gill (D-Montclair).

The fact that Oliver also works for the county as an assistant county administrator sent waves of anxiety through those Codey forces concerned with the concentration of too much power in the office of County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo. seeking a third term next year - probably not without a fight at this point.

Now with the real threat of a Codey retaliation against DiVincenzo, Oliver said the boss factor - namely DiVincenzo's closeness to North Ward Leader Steve Adubato and Adubato's alliance with South Jersey Democratic leader (and Sweeney-backer) George Norcross III - is a non-issue.

"I am the most independent person ever elected," said the assemblywoman from East Orange whose five and a half years in the legislature make her the second longest-serving assemblyperson from the Essex delegation after Assemblyman John McKeon (D-West Orange).

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It wasn't exactly a clandestine meeting.

Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) -- who could be the next Senate President -- was spotted last night at the Liberty House Restaurant in Jersey City dining with state Sen. Sandra B. Cunningham (D-Jersey City) and political operative Joseph Cardwell, who was arrested in July on corruption charges.

While the three ate in the restaurant's dining room, Freeholder Bill O'Dea held a low-dollar fundraiser in the catering room next door.  Two sources who attended the fundraiser reported seeing Cardwell handing out cards for his legal defense fund to guests who trickled into the restaurant's bar from the O'Dea event.   

Reached by phone, Cardwell said he ate with the two senators, but declined to elaborate on what they talked about.   

"The Senator was discussing business. I was just there," he said. 

Sweeney has been campaigning hard for the Senate Presidency, and this morning announced that he has the votes needed to topple incumbent Richard Codey (D-Roseland).  Cunningham, however, was not among the thirteen Democratic Senators he listed as supporting his bid. 

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Democratic sources say that Barbara Buono (D-Metuchen) has the inside track on becoming Senate Majority Leader.  She committed to support Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) for Senate President before Paul Sarlo (D-Wood-Ridge) did.  If Sweeney wins - he has fourteen of the 23 votes in the Democratic Caucus - and if Buono takes the number two post, it opens up the Appropriations Committee chairmanship.  There is some talk that Sarlo will take the Appropriations post and that Nicholas Scutari (D-Linden) will become Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman.

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Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney won the endorsement of the New Jersey State building and Construction Trades council for Senate President today.

Council President William T. Mullin said the group endorsed Sweeney, a labor leader, because he “stands among the very best that New Jersey has to offer in these times of unparalleled economic hardship for so many of our working families.”

Sweeney announced today that he has the votes to topple Senate President Dick Codey (D-Roseland).

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Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) says he secured endorsements from fourteen of the 23 Democrats in the State Senate in his bid to oust Richard Codey (D-Roseland) as Senate President.

In a statement release this morning, Sweeney says he has the backing of Barbara Buono, Bob Smith, Nicholas P. Scutari, Raymond J. Lesniak, M. Teresa Ruiz, Nia H. Gill, Paul Sarlo, Jeff Van Drew, James Whelan, Fred Madden, Dana Redd, Brian Stack, and James Beach.  His endorsements come from every region of the state.

Lesniak called Sweeney “a bold, innovative lawmaker whose leadership skills and ideas for the future make him a first-rate choice” to head the Senate. “

“He works with Democrats and Republicans to find bi-partisan solutions to the most pressing problems facing the people of this state,” said Lesniak.

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CORRECTION:  The original version of this story contained the line "Lesniak says he won’t get entangled in the affairs of the lower house, but if Oliver becomes the next speaker, many legislators will have an easy excuse to vote for Sweeney over Codey."  The second clause of the sentence was written by the author for explanatory purposes and was not said by Lesniak.  The way the sentence was structured, it came off that way.  PolitickerNJ.com regrets the error. 

Assemblywoman Sheila Oliver’s (D-East Orange) sudden frontrunner status to be the next Assembly Speaker has direct implications for the Senate leadership contest: she and Senate President Dick Codey (D-Roseland) are both from Essex County.

“I can’t imagine that either house would be interested in having both leadership positions from the same county – that would be unprecedented and not good.  But that’s stating the obvious,” said state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Elizabeth), who is a key vote in the Senate leadership contest between Codey and state Sen. Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford).

Lesniak says he won’t get entangled in the affairs of the lower house.

At the time Lesniak made the statement to PolitickerNJ.com, he was undeclared as to who he would support for Senate President.  An hour later, Sweeney released a list of his supporters that included Lesniak.  

“Getting this behind us is very, very important. The sooner we resolve this, the better.  Although I would very much like Steve and Dick to have a standstill agreement, neither of them are going to stand still until after the election.  So quite frankly it would be naïve to propose or even think it’s possible,” said Lesniak.  “The next best thing would be to make a decision sooner rather than later.”

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The unexpected announcement late this evening by John Wisniewski (D-Sayreville) that he would drop his fledgling campaign for Assembly Speaker and support Sheila Oliver (D-East Orange) is a clear sign that key North Jersey Democrats will back Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) for Senate President, Oliver for Speaker, and possible Democratic State Chairman Joseph Cryan (D-Union) for Assembly Majority Leader.

Support for Oliver, a relatively obscure Essex County Democrat, is reminiscent of the surprise move in 2001 to dump Joseph Doria (D-Bayonne) as the likely Speaker and replace him with freshman Albio Sires (D-West New York).  Oliver is a protégé of Newark Democratic leader Stephen Adubato, who is a close political ally of South Jersey Democratic leader George Norcross.  She is the Assistant Essex County Administrator. 

If there is a deal with South Jersey, Oliver could potentially start the race with between sixteen and eighteen votes, depending on who wins the hotly contested first district Assembly race.  And if there is a deal with Cryan, Oliver could add four more votes out of Union County.   Wisniewski could put her at 21.

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