Three Hobokenites File Petitions to Run in the June Primary

Three Hobokenites have filed petitions to be able to run in the primary elections in June.

Executive Director of the Hoboken Housing Authority and current school board member Carmelo Garcia will be running for one of the open assembly seats. Garcia is running on the Hudson County Democratic Organization line, together with Jersey City Deputy Mayor Raj Mukherji and State Senator Brian Stack.

Bhalla, in a prepared statement, said that he has not made a final decision yet whether or not he will seek the Democratic nomination.

"Over the next several weeks I will be speaking to residents of the 33rd Legislative District about their concerns," Bhalla said. "Based on those conversations I will decide whether or not to run in this year’s primary election."

Bhalla said he has about $250,000 in cash on hand after fundraising, which he will show on a forthcoming ELEC report. 

"We continue to work very hard on fundraising. In particular, I want to thank the Sikh community and their commitment to my efforts," Bhalla continued. "In the event I decide to run, I have no doubt about our ability to run a competitive campaign and get our message out to voters in the 33rd Legislative District."

Garcia said he is "excited" for the opportunity to run for higher office.

If elected, he said, he plans to step down as school board member. Garcia was re-elected to the board of education in 2011.

Garcia will keep his job as executive director of the Hoboken Housing Authority, he said.

According to a 2012 amendment to title 5 the Hatch Act, which allows those whose salaries are not completely funded by federal funds to run for public, partisan office.

Garcia said he hopes to focus on post-Sandy recovery as well as re-instating senior programs, if elected as assemblyman.

In a prepared press release, Stack said that Garcia "is a visionary leader who continues to enhance the local quality of life for local residents."

“His drive and commitment make him a welcome addition to our ticket,” Stack added.

The two assembly seats in the 33rd district are being vacated by Ruben Ramos Jr. — who is running for mayor in Hoboken — and Sean Connors, who is running for city council in Jersey City.

According to the Star Ledger, 267 people filed petitions state wide to run in the primary.

Young Hoboken Republican James Sanford — also a member of the Hoboken Rotary — has filed petitions to challenge Stack for the position of state senator.