When Essex County Democrats meet virtually tonight for a special convention to award their endorsement in New Jersey’s 11th congressional district, one of the candidates running to succeed Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill will not be there.
Morris Township Committeeman and former Mayor Jeff Grayzel said in a letter to the Essex Democratic organization that their convention is “rigged” in favor of one candidate in particular: Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill (D-Montclair). Gill already has the support of many prominent Essex County Democrats, including the county executive and four state senators, and Grayzel said he did not want to participate in Gill’s “coronation.”
“Your convention is rigged, and your every move has been choreographed with the assistance of party insiders,” Grayzel wrote in his scathing letter to the party organization. “Your behavior encapsulates everything New Jersey voters despise about politics: an establishment organization corrupted by a lobbyist, kept in line by hopes of personal gain and fear of retribution.”
Grayzel does, however, still intend on seeking party support at his own home-county convention in Morris County on December 14, a convention that he argued will be fairer thanks to its use of ranked-choice voting. (Candidates will be able to win tonight’s Essex convention with a plurality of the vote.)
Grayzel is the lone 11th district candidate who will not compete at tonight’s convention; all 12 of his opponents filed letters of intent to seek the endorsement, according to the Essex Democratic organization. That includes many candidates who have been critical of the state’s Democratic establishment in the past and who likely know that they will not be walking away with a party endorsement in Essex.
“It’s fairly clear that the leadership of the party in Essex County has made its decision, but I’m going to work hard to earn the vote of every Essex County Democrat on February 5,” said former Rep. Tom Malinowski, referencing the party’s likely support for Gill.
Analilia Mejia, another candidate competing in the 11th district primary, has called on county parties and Democratic leaders to remain neutral in the race entirely, though she also said she would “obviously love the support of my fellow Democratic committee members” in Essex County.
The timing of the Essex convention has also been a subject of debate, coming just a day after the filing deadline for entering the race. Dozens of Democratic county committeemembers have asked the party to delay the convention and give both candidates and committeemembers more time to prepare.
This story was updated at 11:22 a.m. with comment from Malinowski and more details about who filed to compete at the convention.
