LETTER: After eight years, Hoboken deserves a fresh start

In a letter to the editor, former Hoboken 1st Ward Councilman Mike DeFusco outlines why he believes tomorrow’s mayoral race is a chance for the Mile Square City to vote for the fresh start they deserve.

Dear Editor,

Tomorrow, Hoboken voters will make an important choice about the city’s future. As someone who had the privilege of serving on the City Council for eight years, I care deeply about where we go next.

When I first ran for public office, I didn’t expect to win. I was a newcomer challenging a 21-year incumbent — a true David-versus-Goliath race — but I believed Hoboken could do better. That belief carried me to victory and guided my time in office.

I didn’t run against anyone; I ran for something — for transparency, fiscal responsibility, and a city government that listens to its residents, not just its insiders.

I’m proud of the progress we made. As I watch the transformation of our train terminal into a mixed-use, European-style market — an idea I was told was impossible — I’m reminded how important it is to lead, not follow.

Building consensus to make that project real proved what Hoboken can achieve when we think boldly and work together.

But let’s be honest — no one can look at Hoboken today and say it’s living up to its potential. Parks that were once safe spaces are now places where a grandfather and a nanny were attacked, and where children have found empty drug bags.

Budgets keep growing with little to show for it. Businesses are struggling to open. Transit remains unprepared for the population growth already here.

And a lack of creativity in city government has left us stuck in a status quo that wasn’t acceptable ten years ago — and isn’t acceptable now.

That’s why this election matters. Councilperson Emily Jabbour has been at the center of Hoboken’s political power for eight years.

She’s had full access to City Hall and the administration. Now, as she seeks higher office, she’s trying to distance herself from Mayor Ravi Bhalla — the very person who introduced her to politics and whose administration she’s supported for nearly a decade.

Reinvention may be convenient in an election year, but it raises serious questions about trust.

Equally concerning is the political apparatus behind her campaign. A single-candidate super PAC, “America’s Promise”, was formed to support Mayor Bhalla’s unsuccessful congressional run.

That PAC was run by the same treasurer now leading “Stronger Communities” — the super PAC spending heavily to elect Councilwoman Jabbour.

It’s the same team, the same money, and trust me, will end with the same results. This doesn’t look like a new beginning — it looks like more of the same.

If Hoboken truly wants change, it must move beyond the old alliances that have defined our politics for too long — beyond Ravi Bhalla and Emily Jabbour — and toward a new generation of leadership with fresh ideas, new energy, and the independence to put people before politics.

There are four other candidates in this race, all of whom would bring something different and give our city a real opportunity to start fresh.

Michael DeFusco
Former Hoboken City Council Member (2016-2023)