Joe Garcia

U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-Hoboken), right, endorses Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco

PASSAIC – The city stood at City Hall, or so it seemed, as a large crowd gathered to give its blessing to Mayor Alex Blanco, who tonight announced his intentions to run for mayor again, with the backing of U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-Hoboken), State Democratic Party Chairman Joe Cryan and Passaic County Democratic Chairman John Currie all present to augment the voices of the people.

Trumpeted as a long time coming crumbling of wink and nod politics in Passaic, the mayor’s “Honesty in Action” campaign kick-off flew in the face of a ragtag assortment of Vincent Capuana allies, who heckled the speakers from their campaign HQ on the other side of Passaic Avenue, but were mostly drowned out by the merengue-salsa-soul rhythm spectacle of Blanco and his base.  

“Let no one, not even an opponent we defeated in November, stop our forward progress,” cried Blanco. “When people ask you, ‘Why are you so confident you can make change?’ You tell them, ‘The doctor is in!’”

Running on the heels of a mayor indicted - and later jailed - on corruption charges by then-U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, podiatrist Blanco defeated city super/School Board President Capuana last year, 3,859 to 3,656, after he secured the powerful 3rd Ward backing of Assemblyman/Council President Gary Schaer (D-Passaic).

Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco

Having vanquished a field of four other men in last November’s special election, Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco appears to have strengthened his position heading into the May 12th municipal election where he hopes to secure a full, four-year term.

If Blanco wants to continue as mayor in the aftermath of the jailed Sammy Rivera era, he will have to once again beat second-place finisher Vincent Capuana, the city super committed to making up his 203-vote deficit (3,859 to 3,656 votes) this time with the backing of Councilman Joe Garcia.

Garcia was 2008’s fourth-place finisher in the special mayoral election with 2,684 votes, and this year seeks reelection to the council.

The fusion of Capuana’s and Garcia’s troops on its face looks formidable – but in a small turnout election may be more than offset by Blanco’s ongoing alliance with Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic). 

Angel Laboy

PASSAIC - When Angel Laboy lost his city council bid last year to Ken Lucianin by 24 votes, he said he would probably come back this year, and time’s proved him right. 

Laboy, a public school vice principal, is holding a fundraiser on Jan. 15th in which he hopes to lay the groundwork for what he believes will be about a $5,000-$6,000 race for council. 

“I would like to run alone,” he said. “I have been approached to run on a ticket with several of the mayoral candidates, and I’m not ruling it out, but I’m leaning against it.”

Sources in the City of Passaic say real estate developer Jose Sandoval is gathering forces to launch another run for mayor.

That makes Sandoval the second unsuccessful candidate in the Nov. 4th special election who's already gearing up for next year's May contest to secure a full, four-year term.

City supervisor Vinny Capuana never shut down his downtown campaign headquarters.

Capuana and Sandoval came in second and third respectively behind physician Alex Blanco.

City Councilman Joe Garcia and bail bondsman Carl Ellen came in fourth and fifth, and sources say both men are the objects of the remaining candidates' efforts to bring them and their constituents on board for the 2009 grudge match.

Gearing up at Capuana HQ.

PASSAIC - It stands right across from City Hall, and although he came up 400 votes short in last week's mayoral election, sources close to Vinny Capuana say his headquarters isn't going anywhere.

It will remain open and active.

There is a mayor's race next year, after all.

As mayor, Capuana's conqueror, Alex Blanco, will enjoy the advantage of incumbency in next year's mayoral contest for a full, four-year term.

But both Blanco and Capuana are trying to secure the backing of those other contestants in last week's race to fill the unexpired term of Sammy Rivera: real estate developer Jose Sandoval, City Councilman Joe Garcia, and bail bondsman Carl Ellen. 

Schaer campaigns for Blanco on Election Day

PASSAIC – Yesterday’s mayoral victory by physician Alex Blanco in a 62 percent turnout election depended heavily on the endorsement of Acting Mayor/Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic).

The city is split in half, with the 3rd and 2nd wards on the south side of town and 4th and 1st wards to the north.

In the heart of Schaer’s Orthodox Jewish community, Ward 3 totals show that Blanco earned 1,965 of his 3,859 total votes, according to the Passaic City Clerk’s Office.

That’s where nearly a third of the city’s total 25,543 registered voters are concentrated.

Jose Sandoval

PASSAIC – Sandoval headquarters appears under siege by the campaigns of the two other Latino mayoral candidates.

First, there’s the Blanco presence two doors down from Sandoval’s front door, where a huge sign stands at the head of the block, as if to make it clear this is Blanco country.

Of course, Sandoval owns half the buildings on the block.

At the other end of the street, a gathering of red-shirted Garcia forces shake their signs at passing cars underneath an enormous Sandoval sign on the side of one of Sandoval’s houses.

Dr. Alex Blanco

PASSAIC – It’s bleak on Monday.  The sky never disgorges the rain and people stand around in the streets and talk about what’s going to go down here tomorrow.

There’s one day left in this five-man race for a seat left vacant by a man in federal prison, and most have a good idea about who’s wearing wires and where the money’s coming from, but no one knows who’s going to win.

Not if they’re telling the truth.

Campaign headquarters are almost up to full strength several hours before real estate developer Jose Sandoval, physician Alex Blanco, code enforcement inspector/School Board President Vinny Capuana, bail bondsman Carl Ellen and landlord/City Councilman Joe Garcia head to the local Baptist Church for a final collective prayer on the eve of Election Day.

PASSAIC - On the day the Herald News endorses real estate developer Jose Sandoval  in the mayor’s race, four of the five candidates sit at the front of a big room hugging highway 21 at a warehouse district debate sponsored by an alliance of community groups.

A fifth chair stands empty.

“I had other commitments and I had to make those commitments,” Councilman Joe Garcia explains later.

Garcia’s absence at the last debate forum before Tuesday’s special election fans rumors that either one of the campaigns of Dr. Alex Blanco or city super Vinny Capuana broke through and secured backing from the councilman’s supporters, thereby shutting down his campaign.

Acting Mayor Gary Schaer: Politicker file photo

PASSAIC - With his career at the state level apparently in ascendency, a handful of Trenton allies didn’t think Assemblyman Gary Schaer(D-Passaic), the new chairman of the Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee, should get in the middle of this ground-level, five-man mayor’s contest.

Other factors are already at work, none of them good, including a jailed former mayor, two busted former councilmen who are still visible in city politics, a third councilman defiantly digging in on the governing body against federal corruption charges, and an impaneled grand jury, which each day threatens to intrude on the campaign process by toppling yet another public official.

Moreover, some of the candidates competing - seemingly nice guys - in any event seemed too close to the man everyone still refers to around here as "Sammy," as in Sammy Rivera, the former mayor who had a good run for about five years before corruption caught up with him in his second term and the feds bagged him on bribery charges.