The Hudson County Democratic Organization will postpone their county committee elections until June of next year due to ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Chair Amy DeGise told HCV.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“As we continue to dedicate all of the resources at our disposal to fighting the COVID-19 global pandemic, the New Jersey Democratic State Committee has encouraged all chairs to explore the option of extending the terms of County Committee members who were expected to face re-election this spring,” she said.
“We are truly experiencing an unprecedented health crisis and with restrictions on face-to-face interaction and mandated social distancing requirements rightfully put in place for the foreseeable future, our local parties and I believe this is a policy we should implement. The resolution we intend to pass will be a one-time, one-year extension only of those members who would be on the ballot in June.”
DeGise continued that this is necessary not only to continue flattening the curve, but also to alleviate the burden on the Hudson County Clerk’s Office – who have a high likelihood of seeing the June 2nd primary election being contested solely via vote-by-mail ballots.
“The primary concern of the Hudson County Democratic Organization right now is working with our local and state leaders to keep everyone safe and we will continue to pray for everyone’s health and well-being,” DeGise also stated.
The move is not a shocker, as Democratic committees in place like Essex and Morris Counties have announced similar plans – and the move was arguably telegraphed when the Bayonne Democratic Committee announced their election postponement on Monday, NJ Globe first reported.
DeGise indicated that although they haven’t taken their respective votes yet, the North Bergen, West New York, and Harrison Democrats have agreed to follow suit.
This afternoon, the New Jersey Department of Health revealed that there have been 260 cases of the coronavirus confirmed in Hudson County to date, as well as confirming another fatality – bringing the local total to five.
During the same press conference, Gov. Phil Murphy (D) announced that the first pop-up field hospital in the state will be set up in Secaucus.
