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Local Real Bergen Dems

by: carolh

Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 12:28:48 AM EDT

I just got back from Englewood - the Real Bergen Dems HQ where we were drinking champagne with our hot dogs and brownies. I could not stop laughing with delight at the sweet sweet irony of it all.

Our Real Bergen Dems won in Englewood and Bergenfield and Tenafly and gave Jack Alter a run for his money in Fort Lee.

Democracy is catching on here in Bergen County.

Despite repeated attempts to make us doubt our LD37 team's motives, we prevailed. I trust them completely. I trusted them all along. Sometimes you need a little trust and a lot of faith that the good guys can win.

The good guys won tonite. Not all of them, and not everywhere. But they put the bad guys on notice.

Like I said, we're cleaning house.

carolh :: Local Real Bergen Dems

How they did it:

This is the official word from the Real Bergen Democrats Campaign:

The Real Bergen Democrats swept to victory in two specially targeted local races in District 37. Although the original members of the Real Bergen Democrat team, Senator Loretta Weinberg, Assemblyman Gordon Johnson and Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle, ran without opposition to their legislative seats, they actively supported, endorsed and assisted municipal candidates in two key races in both Englewood and Bergenfield. All of the Real Bergen Democrats in these two local races won big victories against the Bergen County Democratic Organization (BCDO) machine.

In Bergenfield, Timothy Driscoll defeated the Dennis Oury/Joe Ferriero/Kevin Clancy Mayoral candidate, Dolores Butler, 623 -529. His council running mates, Bruce Carlson and Barry Doll won 644 and 588 to 511 and 468, respectively. They defeated BCDO candidates Carlos Aguasvivas and John Person.

This is a significant blow to BCDO attorney and powerbroker Dennis Oury who, along with local BCDO political Boss Kevin Clancy, was turned into a central issue of the campaign.

Our three district 37 state legislators publicly endorsed the Driscoll team via direct mail and sent a full GOTV field organization into Bergenfield to steamroll the Clancy crew.

The same results occured in a key Englewood battle. In Ward 2, incumbent Council President Charlotte Bennett Schoen ran on the Real Bergen Democrat team in column one against the local Michael Wildes/Joe Ferriero BCDO machine candidate. Charlotte originally won her seat off-the-line against the Ferriero county organization three years ago.

This time, her opponent, Marvin Anault, the Englewood Planning Board Chairman (handpicked by Mayor Wildes) fell to defeat 411 to 335. Our district 37 legislators also targeted this race and publicly endorsed Bennett Schoen via direct mail and also sent a fully organized professional GOTV field team into Ward 2 to stop the Wildes/Ferriero machine.

The district 37 legislators, having had their own BCDO opponents withdraw from the legislative contest in the face of polls showing an obvious defeat just a few months ago, would not allow the influence of Joe Ferriero, Dennis Oury, Michael Wildes and the BCDO machine to encroach any further on their legislative district.

The Real Bergen Democrat team scored a significant impact on primary night.

The Real Bergen Democrats prove that "All Politics is Local".

Tags: Timothy Driscoll, Bruce Carlson, Barry Doll, Charlotte Bennett Schoen, (All Tags)

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Local Real Bergen Dems | 4 comments

Kinks in the Ferriero armor (0.00 / 0)

The BCDO proved once again what a paper tiger they truly are as challenging Democrats won off the line in Bergenfield, Elmwood Park and Englewood.

Former East Rutherford Councilman Gary Viccaro also scored a victory defeating George Perry for the Democratic nomination to take on GOP incumbent James Casella, a Paul Sarlo apologist who owes his employment to the BCDO.

The sad reality is that despite these important local victories, had Weinberg stayed the course and led a full scale primary battle as we saw in Hudson and in Essex, Ferriero and friends would be raising the white flag of defeat.

The antics of Clancy, Oury, Ferriero, et al were too much for real Democrats to stomach and it only confirms the widespread disatisfaction with the leadership of the BCDO despite it's electoral success.

While the real Democrats county slate was beaten 3-1, the numbers suggest had a real race been offered this would have been quite different.

Make no mistake about it, Ferrieor is vulnerable and he knows it.

by: BigDaddyDem @ Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 17:07:46 PM UTC

Kinks? (0.00 / 0)

Try the armor completely disintegrated.

Although Alan Gailes was running for Sheriff before the Real Bergen Dems even formed, the whole ENTIRE race was really about the local candidates who pledged support to the LD37 team and encouraged them to run off the line in the first place. Loretta and team made absolutely certain that those courageous souls would not be left to twist in the wind. The ONLY reason folks knew about the shenanigans of the Boss backed candidates and how to vote correctly yesterday was with the help of Loretta's team. Just take a look at the ads.

Loretta outsmarted Joe yet again.

The Real Bergen Dems had limited resources and time, we focused them, just not on the areas Joe was looking. We knew we would have an uphill battle for the County candidates simply because this fight is in the 37th - not County wide. We actually assumed our County candidates would lose, although we had to try. Joe spent money and time robo-calling for the County Slate when our goal - aside from the Sheriff race - was entirely about the local candidates who won.

So, our goal was to have

Weinberg
Huttle
Johnson
Bennett-Schoen
Driscoll
Carlson
Doll

On the ballot in November. Guess what happened? They will be on the ballot in November.

Do you think it was necessary to have a full-blown all-out expensive primary battle for the State legislature seats just so you could make Ferriero feel worse about losing these local races - as well as the Senate and Assembly seats?

Time to realize, Loretta outsmarted Joe, just like she outsmarted you.

One Vote. Yours. It really does matter.

by: carolh @ Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 17:36:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Everytime I think (0.00 / 0)

you made a stupid remark you seem to find an escape hatch to sink even lower in your lack of political insight.

The NUMBERS bear out a full scale primary would have succeeded. It's obvious you know next to nothing about primaries and how to conduct a successful one.

Had Weinberg run she would have forced the Governor's hand as well as other Bergen Dems who would have been more than happy to join in the battle (don't you realize the BCDO has opposition in other parts of the county other than the 37th?).

Loretta squandered a chance to take over the BCDO. Ferriero knows that and that's why he opted for the deal with Corzine. You think for a second he was going to risk millions of dollars in legal fees and professional service, no-bid contracts for his firm and cronies like Oury, Sarlo, et al?

You don't get to live in Old Tappan for nothing you know...

Time to start seeing the trees from the forest...

by: BigDaddyDem @ Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 17:52:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]