Noticias

It looks like Jack Ciattarelli is finally getting some help from the Republican Governors Association.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, the RGA chairman, raised about $1 million at several North Jersey fundraising events today with Ciattarelli, the New Jersey Globe has learned.  The RGA is tapping its own donors in the region.

Four years ago, the RGA looked at inaccurate polling, believed former Gov. Chris Christie when he told them Ciattarelli couldn’t win, and took a pass on the New Jersey race.  Ciattarelli came within three points of ousting Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

Ciattarelli spent time with RGA officials and donors at a summer meeting last month.

A poll released last week by Fairleigh Dickinson University shows Sherrill with an eight-point lead, 45%-37%.

The RGA is expected to make a final decision on how heavily they’ll play in the New Jersey gubernatorial race by the end of this month.

The Democratic Governors Association reserved over $20 million in TV, streaming, and digital ads last month in support of their nominee, Mikie Sherrill.  The ad reservations don’t constitute a final commitment.  Murphy twice chaired the DGA.

Also in July, Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy raised over $1.5 million for the Democratic National Committee at their Middletown home with former President Barack Obama as the headliner.  Most of that money is supposed to be earmarked for New Jersey.

The post RGA chair raises money for Ciattarelli in N.J. appeared first on New Jersey Globe.

John M. De Lamater, the father of prominent Democratic strategist Michael De Lamater, died on August 5 after a nine-month battle with pancreatic cancer.  He was 70.

De Lamater spent 34 years as a special education teacher in Jersey City and was a member of the New Jersey Education Association and the Carpenters Local 15 union in Hackensack.  He was a sports official for many years.

Visitation will be held on Sunday from 2-6 PM at the Di Chiara Funeral Home in Lodi, and a funeral service will be held there on Monday at 10 AM, followed by an 11 AM mass at St. Joseph’s R.C. Church.

“My father was truly a throwback to a different time and era. He never used the internet, never sent an email, and always had his morning routine of going and purchasing the hard print newspapers,” Michael De Lamater said in a Facebook post.  “My father taught me many lessons in life good and bad, both intentionally and unintentionally. Perhaps the most important lesson was to always be direct with people in your life. Let them know how you feel. Let them know where you stand. Above all, always work your hardest and give it your best no matter what it is you’re doing.”

In addition to his son, De Lamater is survived by his wife, Karen, his daughter, Megan, and his grandson, Lucas.

The post John De Lamater, Democratic leader’s father, dies at 70 appeared first on New Jersey Globe.

The New Jersey State Police trooper who reportedly shot and killed his former girlfriend and a firefighter she was dating had been assigned to protect the First Assistant Attorney General, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed.

Ricardo J. Santos, a member of the State Police’s elite Executive Protection Unit, has been assigned to the security detail of Lyndsay Ruotolo, who serves as the number two person at the Department of Law and Public Safety after the attorney general, Matt Platkin, the New Jersey Globe confirmed.  Santos had previously protected Gov. Phil Murphy and his predecessor, Chris Christie.

The First Assistant Attorney General position has only been added to the list of official protectees in recent years.  A spokesperson, citing security issues, declined to comment.

The EPU protects the governor and lieutenant governor, as well as their residences and Drumthwacket, the governor’s mansion.  Additional protectees include the lieutenant governor, the governor’s chief of staff and chief counsel, the attorney general, the state director of Homeland Security, the Senate President and Assembly Speaker, and former governors when they seek a driver for official state events.

Santos fatally shot his 33-year-old ex-girlfriend, Lauren Semanchik, and a 29-year-old man she had been dating, Tyler Webb, before taking his own life. Semanchik, a veterinarian, and Webb, a Berkeley Township firefighter, were found dead Saturday in Franklin Township, Hunterdon County. Santos was later found dead in a park in Middlesex County.

Semanchik’s mother told reporters that she had called local police to complain about Santos stalking her daughter.  It’s not clear if those threats had reached Ruotolo.

Officials with direct knowledge of the incident confirmed the deaths. Multiple media outlets first reported the killings.

The post Trooper who killed ex-girlfriend was protecting First Assistant Attorney General appeared first on New Jersey Globe.

Peapack-Gladstone Council President John L. Sweeney, the Republican nominee for Somerset County Surrogate, died this morning.  He was 63.

Sweeney first won election to the council in 2001 on a ticket with William Horton; he served from 2002 to 2013, and again since 2019.   His council colleagues have elected him council president for the last three years.

“John led the effort to preserve the land as council president twenty years ago,” said Tim Howes, a former Peapack-Gladstone councilman and Somerset County GOP chairman. “Every time I walk through the park, I am thankful for what John did to preserve this land.

In February, Sweeney announced a bid to challenge incumbent Democrat Bernice “Tina” Jalloh; Jalloh unseated former Surrogate Frank Bruno, a Republican, in 2020.  At the Republican convention, Sweeney defeated former Bernards Township Police Chief Brian Bobowicz, 146-63.

A graduate of Yale University and Seton Hall Law School, Sweeney ran his own law firm focusing on estate planning, estate administration, and business succession planning.

Somerset County Republicans have until August 28 to pick a replacement candidate for Sweeney to run in the general election.

Sweeney’s death also triggers a special election to fill his unexpired term on the borough Council.  The municipal clerk will need to open up a petition process to get on the ballot to run for the remaining thirteen months of Sweeney’s term.

In the meantime, the four members of the Peapack-Gladstone Republican County Committee must submit three names to the borough council to replace Sweeney on an interim basis.  The council may either pick one of the names or return the decision to the local party organization.  The governing body must also pick a new council president.

Sweeney is survived by his wife, Karen, and their four children.

The post John Sweeney, Somerset GOP surrogate candidate, dies at 63 appeared first on New Jersey Globe.