The Jersey City Ward A council race now pits incumbent Denise Ridley head-to-head against Kristen Zadroga Hart, while Wards D & F are officially three-way contests after the November 2nd ballot was certified this afternoon.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
While Hart announced her candidacy less than a week before the August 30th filing deadline, she still submitted well over the necessary 294 valid signatures to qualify as a Ward A council challenger, the city clerk’s office told HCV today.
Candidates who were not certified yet had until 4 p.m. this afternoon to cure defective ballots and Pedro Figueroa, who announced he’d be running in Ward A back in May, was unable to cure 62 petitions so he did not make the ballot.
Similarly, potential Ward F challenger, Barshay Muhammad, the manager of the VIP Diner, was unable to cure 42 petitions.
As a result, the Ward F race now features incumbent Jermaine Robinson against activist Frank “Educational” Gilmore and Vernon Richardson – an aide to Mayor Steven Fulop and a former chief of staff to late Ward D Councilman Michael Yun.
In yet another twist, John Salierno was able to cure two petitions to get certified for the Ward D council race, entering the fray against incumbent Yousef Saleh and fellow challenger Danielle Freire.
Beyond that, there were no other changes since Monday’s petition deadline, with seven candidates running at-large, two in Ward B, three in Ward C, and two in Ward E.
