North Bergen Mayor Nick Sacco’s support in the Jersey City mayor’s race, which is still about 21 months away, could flip from former Gov. Jim McGreevey to Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea (D-2).
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“As the first Jersey City elected official to endorse him for State Senate in 1993, I was honored to be with Senator Nick Sacco to celebrate his 30 years as a Senator,” O’Dea wrote on social media on Sunday.
“I was pleased to join Governor Murphy, Congressman Menendez, and many other Democratic leaders to honor Nick. Thank you to Chairman Vainieri for the personal invitation to attend this wonderful evening.”
The event, hosted at the Waterside Restaurant in North Bergen, honored Sacco for his three decade career in the New Jersey Senate, which included a proclamation from Murphy.
Sacco is currently still among nine mayors who have backed McGreevey for the November 4th, 2025 contest, with the only exceptions being Kearny Mayor Carol Jean Doyle (the endorsements came before she was elected), Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop.
However, the fact that Hudson County Democratic Organization Chair Anthony Vainieri, also the North Bergen Department of Public Works Commissioner invited O’Dea, who he served with on the Hudson County Board of Commissioners, indicates a shift is likely.
Furthermore, when a spokesman for Sacco was asked if he still supported McGreevey for Jersey City mayor, he declined to comment.
Guttenberg Mayor Wayne Zitt and East Newark Mayor Dina Grilo, who have also endorsed McGreevey, were also in attendance at the Waterside event. Doyle was present as well.
McGreevey made his campaign official on November 9th, with O’Dea following suit about two weeks later, and he jokingly spelled out “Stack” when asked if anyone convinced him to run, referring to state Senator (D-33)/Union City Mayor Brian Stack.
