Cory Booker

NEWARK - They both come from the south, but the more common U.S. Rep. Rob Andrewsand, they say, compelling trait that South Jersey Congressman Rob Andrews and South Ward Councilman Oscar James II share is desire for change.

Already counting on the long-established North Ward Democratic Organization for support in his U.S. Senate campaign here in Essex County, Andrews has banded with members of the fledgling South Ward Political Action Committee (SWPAC) and will rally with them this Saturday at an event hosted by James.

The alliance looks like a natural.

As the Newarkers take on an entrenched South Ward party machine, and Andrews statewide simultaneously goes after an 84-year old incumbent, U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), they both highlight the new-versus-stale narrative in their respective June 3 battles.

ORANGE - Newark Mayor Cory Booker todayNewark Mayor Cory Booker lent his public support to the mayoral candidacy of Eldridge Hawkins, Jr.

"I know what it takes to restore hope and a new direction to a city in crisis," Booker wrote in a message to Orange voters that appeared on Hawkins campaign mailers throughout the Essex County city on the eve of the last weekend before Election Day.

"Eldridge Hawkins has the competence, good ideas and determination to create a bright future for Orange," Booker wrote of the 28-year old West Orange police officer.

Mayor Cory Booker frolics with seniors in the Central Ward 

NEWARK - Fresh off a Motown workout with Newark seniors at the John F. Kennedy Recreation Center, Mayor Cory Booker reveled in running with the underdogs in a high stakes political contest in which his candidate just took a hit.

Booker’s an at-large delegate for Sen. Barack Obama, who lost to Sen. Hillary Clinton in Tuesday’s Democratic Primary in Pennsylvania in their ongoing war to be the party’s presidential nominee.

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzoMidway through his second term, Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo is gearing up for whatever fight comes his way as he plans for a third term in office.

"Joe is looking ahead to running, and serving, to complete the execution of his vision for Essex County," said chief-of-staff Phil Alagia.

To that end, DiVincenzo today is holding a $300-a head celebration in West Orange.

An ally of North Ward Democratic leader Steve Adubato, Sr., who supports U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1) for U.S. Senate over incumbent U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, DiVincenzo to date has remained neutral in the U.S. Senate primary.

Sharpe James NEWARK - A lot of Democrats who worked with Sharpe James over the years had one word to describe what they felt today as they watched a federal jury deliver a guilty verdict in the former mayor’s corruption trial.

They felt sad.

"Sometimes we cooperated, sometimes we didn’t, but I really believe he cared about Newark," said North Ward Democratic leader Steve Adubato. "It’s a terrible tragedy."

Council President John SowellIRVINGTON - A political pragmatist who insists his insider knowledge of how government works does not diminish his closeness to the community, Council President John Sowell says an aggressive opponent in the West Ward doesn’t know enough about the process to serve.

An executive with the sheet metal workers union, Sowell originally thought he was only going to be running against 21-year old Keith White, political acolyte of North Ward Councilman David Lyons.

Now he’s also trying to stare down an old contemporary.

It’s a three-way race in Irvington’s West Ward with Sowell intending to fend off not just National Guardsman White but one-time ally turned vocal detractor, security guard Cedric Hunter.

Challenger Cedric HunterHunter and Sowell fell out after Hunter, a leader of the Irvington Alliance, failed to spirit the council president away from Team Irvington, a group founded and run by At-Large Councilman (and Freeholder) Bilal Beasley, who was wounded in an unsuccessful challenge last year of Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex).

"Bilal Beasley’s run of victories at the county level are over and soon the people who so openly supported him will besiege him to rid themselves of his disgrace," Hunter wrote to Sowell soon after Beasley’s loss. "As one of his most obedient cohorts, your name is closely aligned with his. Hopefully, you will see that the handwriting is on the wall and Bilal Beasley’s career in politics will (not) last for too much longer."

After failing to secure party line, Terrance Bankston bows out of freeholder raceVanquished by the Essex County Democratic Party machine this week, Terrance Bankston said he regards the leadership’s rejection of his freeholder at-large candidacy as a direct snub of Mayor Cory Booker, and a failure to reward hard campaign work.

But no matter, he says now that his candidacy is over - he means to return to Newark’s South Ward to labor on behalf of district leader candidates as part of an effort to provide an alternative to the machine of U.S. Rep. Donald Payne (D-12) and Payne ally Essex County Chairman Phil Thigpen.

“It was disrespectful to the mayor, and what was even more insulting about the situation was we didn’t just go to the table expecting to get put on the slate, we went out and worked for it,” said the 25-year old employee of the Booker administration.

Newark Mayor Cory Booker 

NEWARK - Since Mayor Cory Booker beat Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex) for mayor, he has gone 0-2 against the maverick West Ward lawmaker.

First there was Rice’s re-election victory last year over Freeholder Bilal Beasely. Over the weekend, it was Rice staffer Rufus Johnson who won the party’s endorsement for a vacant freeholder seat over Booker staffer Terrance Bankston.

U.S. Rep. Donald Payne speaks for Lautenberg at Newark City Hall with Sen. Richard Codey, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and others 

NEWARK - Standing on the steps of Newark City Hall in a city where the largest single political machine backs another candidate, an alliance of elected officials from Essex County today announced their support for Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

U.S. Rep. Donald Payne, state Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex), Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex), Mayor Robert Bowser of East Orange, Mayor Ray McCarthy of Bloomfield, freeholders, and council people joined forces to highlight the endorsements of 34 Essex officials for Lautenberg.

The retirement this year of Johnny Jones from the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders left a vacancy, which Newark Mayor Cory Booker wanted to fill with long time South Ward ally Terrance Bankston. 

On Saturday, however, the party selected Rufus Johnson - chief of staff to Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex), the man Booker defeated for mayor in 2006.

Johnson will run on the line with incumbent freeholders Ralph Caputo, Linda Cavanaugh, Carol Clark, Blonnie Watson, Bilal Beasley, Patricia Sebold, Samuel Gonzalez and Donald Payne, Jr.