Hoboken Councilwoman-at-Large Emily Jabbour hosted her first fundraiser since announcing her bid for mayor exactly one month ago at City Bistro last night.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“To be before you to have a chance to talk about why I love Hoboken makes me feel optimistic and very grateful in a way that I can’t quite capture,” an emotional Jabbour said to applause from a room of about 100 supporters.
“The goal of tonight was to kickoff this campaign and to tell you a little bit more about why it is that I think I should be the next mayor of Hoboken. You being here tells me you think this is not a bad idea,” she joked, prompting laughter from the crowd.
Jabbour formally launched her bid for mayor exactly one month ago, just three days after Mayor Ravi Bhalla, who was in attendance last night, announced he wouldn’t seek re-election, as HCV first reported.
Instead, he will be running in a five-candidate Democratic field for a state Assembly seat in the 32nd Legislative District.
Successfully elected to a council-at-large seat on Bhalla’s ticket in 2017 and 2021, Jabbour said being a Girl Scout has helped prepare her for a mayoral run in the Mile Square City.
“I want you to know that I think about my role, potentially as mayor, as being a lifelong Girl Scout because I am always prepared,” she explained.
“I am over prepared, I am over prepared, and that’s when it came to be January and I knew that we were looking into the Trump administration coming in, I said I am going to run out that gate and I’m gonna tell Hoboken what I wanna do and how we’re gonna do it. So that’s what it is to be a Girl Scout whose prepared to run for mayor of Hoboken!”
She continued that she wants Hoboken to be affordable, have accessible transportation, with infrastructure that works, and also working collaboratively with the schools – both public and charter.
While there are no other declared candidates for the non-partisan November 4th mayoral race, where the 6th Ward and three council-at-large seats will be up for grabs as well, 2nd Ward Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher, 3rd Ward Councilman Mike Russo, and 4th Ward Councilman Ruben Ramos are expected to enter the fray sooner than later.
As she concluded her remarks, Jabbour said she wanted to strive to continue to improve all facets of Hoboken if elected.
” … We need to be talking to everyone, we need to support people from all over those different points in their lifespan. I want to learn from the past, and I want to not repeat the mistakes of the past because Hoboken sometimes has a tough history and we need to know about those things and do better,” she stated.
“So, I’m hoping that I will have your support to keep getting things done for Hoboken because that’s how I’ve taken on every single day as a councilperson from Day 1 until today, my eight year on the council. And I want you to me with any concerns, any challenges. I want to have those conversations.”
Other electeds in attendance included outgoing Assemblyman John Allen (D-32), Councilman-at-Large Jim Doyle, Councilman-at-Large Joe Quintero, who is also the chair of the local Democratic party, as well as Board of Education Trustees Sharyn Angley, Alex De La Torre, Antonio Grana, and Leslie Norwood.
