Mapp won a two-year term as chairman of the Democratic City Committee in June 2015. He asked "anyone who is qualified" for either the Third Ward or Citywide At-large seat to email their background and reasons for running to PDCC.correspondence@gmail.com
The screening committee will be expected to recommend a slate by Feb. 24. The City Committee will then meet to endorse candidates, although Mapp reminded members that as chairman he has the authority to appoint anyone to run on the line.
A candidate must be "a legal voter of the city" and a resident for a least one year of the ward or wards to be represented, and will serve four years if elected, according to the city's special charter. All Democratic and Republican council candidates must file for the June 7 primary at the County Clerk's office by 4 p.m. on April 4.(Independents file by 4 p.m. on June 7.) Incumbents are Gloria Taylor in the Third Ward and Tracey Brown in the citywide at-large seat, for which she has already launched a re-election campaign.
Committee member Jim Spear said the group owed it to incumbents to "tell them what the process is going to be," but Mapp said it was an open meeting Friday that anyone could attend. He said he was sure people in the room would inform the incumbents.
Councilwoman Rebecca Williams said she will also post the details on her blog.
Also on Friday, members observed a moment of silence in remembrance of Lillian Jamar and Dottie Gutenkauf, both longtime Democratic City Committee stalwarts who died in 2015. The vacancies caused by their passing were filled, as well as another caused by a member's relocation due to a fire. Committee member Agurs Cathcart was named parliamentarian, succeeding Gutenkauf.
Mapp also discussed the need for poll workers for the June primary and November general election, as well as the April 19 school board election caused by a Board of Education decision to revert from November elections. The City Council moved school board elections from April to November in 2012, and after four years the BOE had the right to move them back to April.
Mapp said poll workers serve for one year. They can apply at the gmail address above, and must be available to take training. He said he gets to choose who the poll workers will be.
Regarding the three school board seats up for election, Mapp said there would be no party endorsement, but he expects a challenge to the incumbents.
--Bernice
"The screening committee will be expected to recommend a slate by Feb. 24. The City Committee will then meet to endorse candidates, although Mapp reminded members that as chairman he has the authority to appoint anyone to run on the line."
ReplyDeleteHow does this contention of authority square with NJSA 19:34-52? "No state, county or municipal committee of any political party shall prior to any primary election indorse (sic) the candidacy of any candidate for a party nomination or position."
To the same point, in Cavanagh v. MORRIS CTY. DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE (121 N.J. Super. 430 (1972),297 A.2d 594), the court found "For the reasons stated above it is hereby declared that defendant Morris County Democratic Party's by-law creating a screening committee for the purpose of endorsing candidates for primary elections is in violation of N.J.S.A. 19:34-52 and therefore invalid. Defendant is permanently enjoined from organizing a candidate screening committee or any committee with the above stated purpose."
So what gives? It looks like this whole business of a screening committee, and anything other than random ballot placement of any qualified primary candidates, runs afoul of the law.
Mea Culpa! It was the law, and is still on the books, but in the case of Eu v San Francisco County Democratic Committee (decided 1989), the US Supreme Court found that prohibitions against primary endorsements by political parties was unconstitutional because they deprived parties and their members of the rights of free speech and free association guaranteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments. The court found that although the State had a legitimate interest in orderly elections, it had no compelling interest in orderly parties or regulating their internal affairs. I guess that leaves it up to the membership to constrain unilateral and undemocratic actions in its name, or otherwise.
DeleteTell that to Jerry.
ReplyDeleteIt's a recommendation to the chairman, not an endorsement. It may seem like parsing, but there is a difference. And it is certainly better than not involving duly elected members in the process of making a recommedation, which was how Green did it.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't appear any different than Jerry Green. "Screening committee" will just "recommend" who Mapp tells them to. I hear Dan Damon is one of the "screeners" lol. I asked a couple of people who were at the meeting who was on the "screening committee" and they could only remember Dan Damon, Jim Spears, Mary Burgwinkle, and Barry Good. I heard there were seven. Does anybody know>
ReplyDeleteThe screening committee members are Marleen Powell and Pedro Estevez from the First Ward, Jim Spear and Mary Burgwinkle from the Second Ward, Joylette Mills-Ransome and Dan Damon from the Third Ward and Barry Goode from the Fourth Ward.
DeleteQUALIFIED? According to who's standards. And what shall be the yardstick by which they measure the quality of a potential candidate. MR.X
ReplyDeleteThey have to meet the qualifications in the City Charter, which I mentioned in the blog post. See Article II, 2.3 for the whole text. I would hope potential candidates also have some familiarity with municipal government and separation of the branches, in addition to a commitment to serve in good faith without personal agendas. But that's just me.
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