Grillo in suit to stop U.S. Senate special election
Asbury Democratic chair wants vacancy filled on Nov. 5
Asbury Park Democratic Chairman Guiseppe “Joe” Grillo [above] is one of three plaintiffs in a lawsuit to stop the special election in October to fill the state’s vacant U.S. Senate seat.
Republican Governor Chris Christie set the date for the election on Oct. 16. The winner will fill the seat left vacant by the death of Democratic Senator Frank Launtenberg, and serve out the remainder of the term which ends January 2015.
Grillo — along with Marie Corfield, a candidate for the Assembly in the 16th District, and Joseph Danielsen — filed the suit in order to move the Senate contest to the Nov. 5 general election ballot.
The suit claims voters will be disenfranchised by the decision to hold a separate vote for the U.S. Senate seat less than three weeks before the general election, Grillo said. The attorney representing Grillo and the other two plaintiffs is Peg Schaffer, who is chair of the Somerset County Democratic Party.
Christie announced the special election on Tuesday, giving potential candidates only a week to decide whether to file to get on the ballot. Candidates must submit 1,000 valid signatures of New Jersey voters on a nominating petition by Monday at 4:30 p.m.
Grillo objects to that tight deadline.
“There are good, hard-working people in cities like Asbury Park that are more than qualified to run for U.S. Senate. This signature deadline seems arbitrary and is cumbersome to anyone who lacks the organization to get their message out quickly,” Grillo said.
Grillo is also the executive director of the Monmouth County Democratic Party.
Declared candidates for the Senate seat on the Democratic side are U.S. Representative Rush Holt and Newark Mayor Cory Booker. Representative Frank Pallone is also expected to run. On the Republican side, former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan has announced his candidacy.
Democrats have charged Christie with setting the October special election to keep Booker, the presumed Democratic front-runner, off the November ballot, which could strengthen the Democrats chances in down-ballot contests. Christie is running for reelection in November and has a large lead in polls.
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