Touting the political independence of his office, Republican Joe Giralo will seek re-election to a second term as Atlantic County Clerk in 2026.
“Our office isn’t blue, and it isn’t red—we’re purple,” stated Giralo. “We serve Democrats, Republicans, and independents alike with the same commitment to fairness, accuracy, and service. I’m a County Clerk who works for the people, not for politics.”
He said his office has processed over $120 million in real estate transfer fees, recorded over 200,000 documents, processed more than 10,000 passports, overseen fifteen elections, and officiated at more than 700 weddings.
“Since entering public service at age 18, I’ve dedicated my life to serving others,” Giralo said. “I’m proud of the work we’ve done, and I look forward to sharing my story in every community across Atlantic County.”
Giralo spent six years as a Hammonton councilman and fifteen years as a school board member before running for county clerk in 2021. He initially entered the race against incumbent Ed McGrettigan, whose mistake in mailing the wrong ballots to some voters in a 2020 freeholder race led to the invalidation of the election and a subsequent do-over a year later – circumstances that changed the outcome.
McGettigan didn’t run again, and Giralo defeated Democrat Lisa Jiampetti, the mayor of Egg Harbor City, by a massive 8,416 votes, a 55%-45% win.
No Democratic candidates have entered the race.
This week, Atlantic City Police Director Sean Riggin announced that he would seek the Democratic nomination for sheriff. The incumbent, Joseph “Tokyo Joe” Donoghue, is expected to seek re-election to a second term.
Atlantic could be New Jersey’s most politically competitive county: Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill won it by three points in 2025, and Republican Jack Ciattarelli carried Atlantic by eleven points in 2021. Democrat Andy Kim won it by nearly two points in 2024, while Republican Donald Trump prevailed by three points.
Last year, Democrat Sherri Parmenter came within three points of unseating veteran Surrogate James Curcio, and Republican Art Schenker won an open at-large county commissioner race by just 271 votes countywide and a margin of less than three-tenths of one percent.
