Jersey City Ward E Councilman raised $208,841.67 in his bid for mayor in Quarter 3, despite not making it official until September 19th, with $409,646.72 cash on hand, his October 15th campaign finance report says.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The downtown councilman, elected as an independent in 2017 and 2021, received nearly 800 donations, more than half of which contributed after his campaign kickoff, and approximately $112,000 of his third quarter haul came from almost 600 city residents.
“Jersey City is ready for change and the strong support we’ve seen since our massive launch event only confirms that. James is running to bring new leadership to Jersey City, and people are hungry for a mayor who is looking to the future and has a plan to make their lives better,” said Solomon for mayor campaign manager Stuart Thomas.
“This campaign is only picking up more and more momentum as James goes neighborhood by neighborhood and block to block talking to voters about his vision for Jersey City.”
The vast majority of donations are a thousands dollars or less, with former West Orange Mayor Robert Parisi and his wife being exceptions, contributing $5,200 each.
Former Hudson County Commissioner candidate Alex Valdez gave $1,400, while Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, his brother Amar, and his father, Ranbir donated $1,000 a piece.
Hoboken 5th Ward Councilman Phil Cohen, who hosted a fundraiser for Solomon at his home last month, wrote a check for $500, as did Vijay Chaudhuri, Bhalla’s chief of staff. Hoboken Business Administrator Jason Freeman also gave $250.
The support from the neighboring Mile Square City isn’t terribly surprising, given that Solomon backed Bhalla for Congress against U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez (D-8), with the Hoboken mayor also likely to run for state Assembly in the 32nd Legislative District.
That district includes Wards C, D, and E in Jersey City, as well as all of Hoboken.
Former Jersey City Ward C council candidate Kevin Bing, who also hosted a Solomon fundraiser at his home, chipped in $2,650, while Eleana Little, who ran for Hudson County executive last year, donated $725.
As far as expenditures go, Solomon kept a low burn rate in Q3, spending just $18,583.30 on mostly administrative fees on items such as ActBlue and Stripe.
The non-partisan Jersey City mayoral race isn’t until November 4th, 2025, but despite that fact, there’s already five declared candidates in the field.
Former Gov. Jim McGreevey, the leading fundraiser to date, Hudson County Commissioner (D-2) Bill O’Dea (D-2), Council President Joyce Watterman, and former Board of Education President Mussab Ali are also in the fray for the time being.
