BY WALTER ELLIOTT
NEWARK – Former Newark Municipal Council President LaMonica McIver – thanks to a majority of participating voters here and in parts of “West Essex,” Union and Hudson counties Sept. 18 – will succeed the late Donald Payne, Jr. as the U.S. 10th Congressional District through Jan. 3.
McIver, who was running with Essex County Democratic Committee support, was ushered into fellow Newark native Payne’s seat by predominant polarities in those three counties over Republican runner Carmen Bucco, of Nutley, and independents Russell A. Jenkins, of Maplewood, and former Orange Councilman Rayfield Morton.
McIver’s amassing of 82 percent of the overall CD-10 vote paved her way to being sworn in by U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) inside the House of Representatives’ Capitol chamber before New Jersey’s Congressional delegation 6:30 p.m. Sept. 23.
CD-10 voters gave her such a predominant plurality that the New Jersey State Board of Canvassers waived the traditional 14-day election certification hold and told Acting House Clerk Kevin F. McCumber to proceed with her inauguration.
A majority of district voters, on Nov. 5’s General Election, will get to decide whether McIver can hire a moving van to her new Washington, D.C. address. She and at least Nutley Republican Carmen Bucco are on that ballot for a full two-year term.
The former Newark Municipal Council President meanwhile still retains her East Ward Council seat, pending Nov. 5’s outcome. The state board would normally have waited until between Oct. 8 and 14 to certify the results.
Essex County Clerk Chris Durkin (D-Roseland), as of 10:08 p.m. that Wednesday, has McIver sporting 15,781 votes from among 18,297 cast in person or by mail. She thereby unofficially received 86.25 percent of the vote in CD-10’s Essex towns.
Bucco captured 1,877 votes for 10.26 percent. Russell registered 343 for 1.87. Morton mustered 296 for 1.67.
CD 10 here includes Newark (except the East and West Wards), Irvington, East Orange, Orange, West Orange and Montclair’s South Ward plus Caldwell and Essex Fells of “West Essex.”
In Hudson County’s sole CD-10 town – “Central” Jersey City – McIver mastered 3,278 votes from an overall 3,960 for 82.78 percent as of 1:33 p.m. Sept. 20. Bucco was next with 1,207 or 12.75. Jenkins placed third there with 89 for 2.25.
Morton completed the field at 56 or 1.41. There were 32 write-ins for the remaining .81 percent.
In CD-10’s Union County towns – Cranford, Garwood, Hillside, Kenilworth, Roselle, Roselle Park and part of Linden – McIver topped the totals as of 9:52 p.m. that Wednesday with 7,060 of 10,008 overall votes for 70.54 percent.
Bucco was next up with 2,734 or 27.32. Morton placed third with 100 or one percent. Jenkins rounded out the balloted field with 82 for .82 percent There were 32 write-in candidates for .32 percent.
There are 1,647 Vote By Mail and provisional ballots to be counted as of 3:30 p.m. Sept. 19 and 20 ballots that need to be “cured” among the three counties. The Hudson County Clerk’s Office and Board of Elections, as of press time, are searching for an electronic missing voting machine memory stick from among 99 voting machines deployed in the 16 towns.
McIver had tallied in the July 14 special party primaries at 11,563 votes among CD-10’s 16 towns for 55.4 percent. She held a 43 percent majority in Essex County over nine other Democratic party primary challengers.
The eight-year Newark Central Ward Councilwoman, 38, and most recent council president gets to fill out Payne’s unexpired term until Jan. 3. The 12-year second-generation Congressman, 65, had died from a heart attack April 24, setting off this chain of special elections.
McIver was so confident of winning Sept. 18’s election that she resigned from the Municipal Council as its president the day before. Newark’s elders selected Councilman C. Lawrence “Larry” Crump as their council president Sept. 17 on a 5-0-5 split vote.
McIver, Crump, At-Large Councilwoman Louise Scott-Rountree, South Ward Councilman Rev. Patrick Council and West Ward Councilman Dupré Kelly voted for Crump’s appointment. Councilmen Carlos Gonzalez and Luis Quintana, East Ward Councilman Michael Silva and North Ward Councilman Anibal Ramos, Jr. abstained from voting.
McIver is staying on as Central Ward Councilwoman – but for how long?
She first has to wait for election results certification between Monday and Oct. 14 and subsequent swearing-in before she packs her bags for Washington, DC.
The East Ward Council seat may go up for a Nov. 4, 2025 special election to complete the unexpired term – which would be up for a full four-year term on May 12.
McIver, who was re-elected May 10, 2022 as part of Mayor Ras Baraka’s “Moving Newark Forward” ticket, is into her 28th month of her second four-year term. State law stipulates holding special elections for terms who have more than 12 months remaining.
Then there is the Nov. 5 regularly scheduled General Election – which is shaping up as at least a McIver-Bucco rematch.
Democratic party committee leaders, led by LeRoy Jones, Jr. (D-East Orange) nominated McIver after the scheduled June 6 party primaries were held. Payne died too late for his name to be replaced on the June 6 primary ballot – whose results became his posthumous victory lap.
Gov. Phil Murphy (D-Rumson), who desired a complete New Jersey Congressional delegation in a narrow-majority House, called for the July 16 and Aug 18 special elections.
