By Stephen J. Novak New Jersey Herald Thursday, March 27, 2008 After more than 5,600 area voters declared as Democrats in the February presidential primaries, five of the party's Congressional candidates are looking to draw upon the new voter resource in Sussex County's two traditionally red districts. "I'm really, really impressed with the numbers of Democrats who came out to vote in Sussex County in the presidential primaries. There's a nice potential base in there," said Fifth Congressional District candidate Camille Abate, of Glen Rock. "Obviously, you want those people to become active in the Democratic Party. You hope they'll stay engaged." Members of the Democratic Party in Sussex County will have their say in who they want to continue to the November general election when the county Democratic Committee holds a nominating convention on April 6. There, party affiliates will determine which two of the five candidates for the Fifth and 11th Congressional Districts will receive the county Democrats' endorsements. It is the first time in recent years that the Sussex County branch of the party will hold such a meeting. "Every registered Democrat in Sussex County is eligible and urged to participate," said Ed Selby, chairman of the county party's outreach and development committee. "The convention will be their chance to hear from the candidates directly and consider who they would want to endorse as their candidate in November." The Fifth District, which covers most of Sussex County, portions of Bergen and Passaic counties and all of Warren County, is represented by Republican Congressman Scott Garrett, a resident of Wantage. The two Democratic candidates battling for the nomination are Abate and Dennis Shulman, both of whom are running campaigns based out of Bergen County. Both Abate and Shulman have received endorsements from officials in the more Democratic counties to the east, and they are now beginning to turn their attention to Sussex and Warren counties. Abate, like many of the candidates, has attended meetings of local Democrat groups. "My plan with Sussex County is to go to as many Democrat meetings as I can," Abate said. Shulman, a rabbi from Demarest, received the support of former Sussex County Freeholder and Democratic Chairman Howard Burrell shortly after announcing his candidacy last year, and Shulman's staff has embarked on a telephone campaign to registered Democrats in Sussex County. More campaigning is planned for May, spokesman Jeff Hauser said, and Shulman's staff is building its case against Garrett in preparation for the general election in November. "We feel good about where we're at. We're very well set for the primaries," Hauser said. New Jersey's 11th Congress-ional District, currently represented by Republican Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen, of Harding, covers all of Morris County, portions of Essex, Passaic and Somerset counties and Byram, Hopatcong, Sparta and Stanhope in Sussex County. Three Democrats are competing for the chance to try and unseat Frelinghuysen, who was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994. District candidate Ellen Greenberg, a real estate attorney from Mendham, said Frelinghuy-sen is a "formidable, entrenched, well-liked" Congressman whose policies "are all wrong" for the state and country. Greenberg said she has been trying to spread her message through meetings of the Sussex Democrats and other events, including a peace vigil held recently in Sparta. She also has been trying to arrange "town meetings" in the district's four Sussex County municipalities. Candidate Tom Wyka, a Springfield resident who ran in the 11th District race in 2006, has been to party meetings and said he plans to start making phone calls within the next week. "April 6 will be pretty interesting," he said of the candidate pool. "It will be one more opportunity to talk to the party faithful." Candidate Harry Hager, a retired banker and Vietnam veteran from Chester, said he has not had much time to get to Sussex County as he has been looking toward his immediate area for the signatures necessary to appear on the primary election ballot. Candidates have until April 7 to file their petitions. Though registered Democrats and Independents outnumber Republicans two to one in Morris County, the Sussex County convention will serve as an opportunity to get into a new area, he said. "One of the three of us still needs to win the primary to get on the November ticket," Hager said. |
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