Bob Hugin accepts the endorsement for U.S. Senate from the Ocean GOP. Chairman George Gilmore in the background. photo by Mike Ward
Former Celgene CEO Bob Hugin won the U.S. Senate endorsement of the Ocean County Republican Party tonight in Toms River, defeating the Ocean GOP’s 2014 nominee, Brian Goldberg, by a margin of 142-12.
“Ocean County delivers the highest number of Republican votes of any county in New Jersey and we are fully behind Bob Hugin,” said OCGOP Chairman George Gilmore. “We need a Senator that New Jersey can be proud of again, and we are confident Bob is that person. We will deliver for Bob and all of our GOP candidates on November 6th.”
“I’m honored and proud to receive the formal endorsement of the Ocean County Republican Organization,” said Bob Hugin. “My parents instilled in me the values of service to community and country at a young age. I’ve lived those values as a US Marine and business leader, and will do the same as our next United States Senator.”Read the rest of this entry »
O’Scanlon: “While I appreciate Amy’s confidence and endorsement for Assembly, I am running for Senate”
Assemblywoman Amy Handlin said she would seek another term in the New Jersey General Assembly if the 13th district County Committee members choose another candidate to replace Senator Joe Kyrillos in the upper house of the legislature. So far, the only other candidate for the Senate seat is Handlin’s district mate, Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon.
“Yes and yes,” Handlin said when asked if she would seek the GOP nomination for Assembly if she failed in her Senate bid and if she wanted O’Scanlon on the ticket as a candidate for Assembly.
All three seats in the 13th legislative district appear to be up for grabs next year.
If published reports are to believed, Assembly Members Amy Handlin and Declan O’Scanlon are heading for a primary in June for the GOP nomination to succeed Senator Joe Kyrillos in the New Jersey Senate.
If both Handlin and O’Scanlon compete on the June ballot, rather than letting the County Committee members choose a nominee at a convention, both Assembly seats will be vacant.
Monmouth County Republican Chairman Shaun Golden released a statement this morning announcing that his slate of municipal candidates this year included six Young Republican Leaders under the age of 35.
Candidates for local office filed to run with their respective Municipal Clerks all across Monmouth County on Monday. It is clear by the two parties’ selection of nominees, that Republicans in Monmouth County are the only ones offering voters a chance to elect a new generation of leaders with fresh, bold ideas for the future.
By virtue of his long term friendship with Governor Christie and his campaign for U.S. Senate last year, State Senator Joe Kyrillos is on every Christie mind reader’s short list of possible U.S. Senators to replace the late Frank Lautenberg.
Assuming Kyrillos defeats Leigh-Ann Bellew in the primary today, his move to the U.S. Senate would create a vacancy for the nomination for State Senate in LD 13. If either Assemblywoman Amy Handlin or Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon move up to the Senate slot, as would be expected, there will be an Assembly nomination vacancy.
Neither Handlin nor O’Scanlon will say if they want the State Senate seat, which probably means they both want it. Even so, I would expect that they would work that out amongst themselves rather than have a convention fight.
A nominating convention for the resulting Assembly vacancy would bring out a wealth of Republican talent.
O’Scanlon: Temporary FEMA Housing to be extended for two weeks
Displaced residents should call Assemblyman O’Scanlon’s offfice for help: 732-933-1591
Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long told MMM that the residents of her community that have been sleeping in carsare people who have been put up in hotels by FEMA who are evicted by the hotels on weekends in order to accommodate wedding guests.
“When hotels have weddings or events, people get evicted for the weekend,” Long said via twitter, “I just learned of people sleeping in cars because of this and I’m hopping mad.”
Long said that FEMA’s response has been, “Well, when that happens the people should call us.” Yet, when people do call FEMA’s 800 #, the FEMA employees who answer the phone are dropping the ball or don’t know what to do.
Long said she trying to reach her displaced residents in this situation to coordinate weekend housing through Sea Bright Rising and other charities. “FEMA knows where my people are, I need their help in locating them.”
Union Beach Councilman Charlie Cocuzza told MMM that the same situation is happening to displaced residents of his borough. “The hotels are asking people to leave on Friday and tell them they can come back on Sunday night,” said Cocuzza, “These people are falling through the cracks on weekends.”
Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon said that his legislative office has been transformed to a clearing house for temporary housing to match people in need with a roof over their heads. “This should not be happening,” said O’Scanlon, “but too often we’re hearing about it too late. No one should be sleeping in their cars. Anyone, from my district or not, can call my office and we’ll find them a place to stay.”
O’Scanlon’s office said landlords or anyone willing to put up a displaced resident can also contact them. O’Scanlon’s phone # is 732-933-1591.
FEMA temporay housing allowances are set to expire on Saturday the 12th. O’Scanlon told MMM that the program will be extended for two weeks.
Monmouth County Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon is making statewide waves and generating statewide headlines in his quest to prove that red light cameras are not safety devices, but revenue generating ripoffs.
O’Scanlon makes a compelling case, backed up with engineering, that yellow lights should be timed for actual speeds that motorists are driving, rather than by the posted speed limits. He convinced MMM that’s he’s right on the issue, and that might be the subject of a future post. Read one of these articles if you want to bone up on that issue now. What prompted my call to O’Scanlon was politics, not policy.
There are no red light cameras in O’Scanlon’s legislative district, the 13th in Northern Monmouth County.
As the Assembly Republican Budget Officer, O’Scanlon has one of the highest, if not the highest, statewide profile of his fellow Republicans in the Assembly.
The last time O’Scanlon made statewide headlines on a issue not related to the budget he was speaking out in favor of medical marijuana and against towns that were using zoning laws to keep happy medicine dispensaries and farms outside of their boundaries. MMM’s unscientific poll indicated that his position on 420 could cause a 180 among his supporters in the 13th.
I wondered if O’Scanlon might have political ambitions that, in addition to his commitment to doing the right thing, are motivating his activities outside of his district.
All three seats in the 13th legislative district appear to be up for grabs next year.