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Oct. 28 to Nov. 3
A-Voting We Will Go
Early voting has been heavier than anyone expected. The addition of early in-person voting in New Jersey had 27% of county registered voters having cast their votes by the morning of Nov. 1, with the rest of that day and two more to go still available. Also, 75% of the issued mail-in ballots had been received by that same Friday morning.
You may be reading this as you wait to cast your ballot on Election Day. We won’t know the exact number until the polls close, but early voting, by whatever method chosen, has taken a big chunk of what would have been Election Day turnout and converted it to votes already cast.
Across the nation early voting has gained steadily in popularity. While early in-person voting is new to New Jersey, this being the first presidential election with the option available in the Garden State, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission says that back in prepandemic 2016, more than 17% of the national electorate cast ballots through early voting options. Some 47 states offered a form of early voting in 2024.
With early voting quickly becoming a game-changer, other news came this week concerning Senate candidate Andy Kim’s lawsuits seeking an end to county line ballots in New Jersey primaries. Nearly all New Jersey counties now have settlements in place or awaiting approval that will mean the end of county line ballots.
Only two counties, Bergen and Union, remain in the court fight to preserve the unique process that has given muscle to county political committees for decades. New Jersey’s system of party-endorsed candidates in a single row or column may be out across the board before the state’s voters select a new governor in 2025.
But let’s not count those chickens too early. Cape May County’s clerk has entered into a settlement agreement in principle, but it still awaits approval from the County Republican Committee. There are also approvals of drafted settlements needed by the Camden County Democratic Committee and the Morris County Republican Committee.
Data Center Load Soaring
As Atlantic City Electric comes under more public ire for rising electricity bills, the CEO of its parent company, Exelon Corp., warned of rapidly rising load issues related to data center needs. Calvin Baker discussed Exelon’s projections on a call with analysts, saying there is a “high probability” that data center loads in the Exelon services area will rise to 11 gigawatts, from 6 gigawatts earlier this year. So much for all the talk of rising rates due to higher consumption of electricity by residential users.
A gigawatt of electricity is a very large amount. It can power roughly 750,000 homes and is a quarter of the consumption of New Zealand for a year.
The surge in use comes as electricity utilities, including Exelon, are grappling with significant grid issues and with the need for greater certainty that adequate power will be available in the PJM Interconnection, the overseer of the grid for 13 states including New Jersey. PJM runs the wholesale auctions for electricity capacity where prices have risen dramatically, prices that will eventually find their way into costs paid by the residential ratepayer.
The governors of five states, including Phil Murphy of New Jersey, have written to both the board chair and president of PJM. The letter states, “We recognize supply has decreased while demand is projected to grow at an accelerated rate. However, both the Independent Market Monitor for PJM and the Organization of PJM States, Inc. have correctly observed that there are serious flaws with the PJM capacity market construct leading to capacity prices that fail to reflect supply and demand fundamentals.”
Without unpacking the technical aspects of what the governors are saying, it is sufficient to note they want and expect reforms in the PJM wholesale energy capacity market auctions. In July the PJM capacity auction resulted in prices that were 10 times higher than the previous auction.
Murphy shifted any responsibility from the shoulders of the state by saying, “In New Jersey, we’re doing our part by bringing new resources to the market and making electricity more affordable for families and businesses as we look to a clean and resilient energy future.”
Race for Governor
While the current presidential race is sucking all the oxygen out of the news coverage, there is a very important race on the horizon for Garden State residents – the race for governor.
So who’s running?
The Democrats have four certain candidates and two others who are expressing “serious interest” in a run for the governor’s mansion next year.
Actual candidates include Steve Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City, who has been preparing position papers and written proposals for everything from transportation infrastructure to the housing crisis to tax policy, and more. All documents are located on his website for easy reference.
Another well-known candidate is past Senate President Steve Sweeney, who is clearly the South Jersey candidate complete with the support of South Jersey Democrat kingmaker George Norcross. It was after that endorsement that a state grand jury indicted Norcross for racketeering.
Other candidates include Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who says he will “deconstruct the state budget and reassemble with equity as our North Star.”
Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller is the latest to announce, and he comes with the backing of the state’s large Education Association union, of which he is president. His “This is our chance” campaign makes education a priority.
Reps. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) and Josh Gottheimer (D-Wyckoff) are considering entering the race but have not yet done so.
On the Republican side, former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli wants another chance at the job following his closer-than-expected loss to Murphy in 2021. This will be his third straight attempt at the top job, which he takes on with a pledge to tackle the state’s tax issues.
Never Trumper State Sen. Jon Bramnick says he will never vote for Donald Trump and describes himself as a pro-choice Republican with traditional Republican values.
Conservative radio host Bill Spadea, on the other hand, was praised by Trump at a Wildwood rally. Townsquare Media has come under significant criticism for allowing Spadea to run while maintaining his platform on the air. Spadea says, “I’m unapologetically conservative, pro-life, pro-Second Amendment and pro-Trump.”
Ed Durr has also thrown his hat into the ring. Durr’s claim to fame came when he unseated Sweeney for the state Senate, ending Sweeney’s rule as Senate president. Durr, known as Ed the Trucker, served one term and then lost the seat to a Democratic challenger. He says the state is broken, both financially and morally.
Former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac is considering a run on the Republican ticket but has yet to announce formally.
Happenings
*Cape May County is in a severe drought, having moved from a “moderate” designation last week, according to the U. S. Drought Monitor.
*The county commissioners have approved a $9 million contract for preliminary engineering on Ocean Drive road upgrades and bridge improvements. The work is part of a $250 million project that includes the replacement of the Middle Thorofare Bridge.
*Two people escaped from a burning building in Ocean City on Saturday, Oct. 26, after fire initially trapped them on a second-floor balcony.
*Chung Ho, who pleaded guilty to the shooting death of a Lower Township police officer in 1994 and served 30 years in prison for the crime, has been freed on parole.
*A report by a nonprofit environmental organization that rates the health of the nation’s beaches gives New Jersey’s a failing grade.
*“It was like dinner at Grandma’s house,” Giulia Perricci said of Via Mare, her family’s Avalon restaurant, which was demolished Oct. 25 and is scheduled to become the site of a duplex.
*DEP Commissioner Shawn LaTourette told a meeting room packed with Upper Township residents Oct. 28 that some of the water samples taken from wells in the Beesley’s Point section of town were tampered with to show there were dangerous levels of mercury in the groundwater.
*The Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office and the State Police have launched an investigation into the shooting death in Woodbine of Daquann Smith, 22, of Whitesboro, at around 11 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 25.
*The latest battleground in the implementation of New Jersey’s strategy to electrify the transportation sector is forming around the Advanced Clean Truck Regulations: Legislation has been introduced in Trenton to delay their start from Jan. 1, 2025, to Jan. 1, 2027.
*The state Department of Community Affairs has released its nonbinding next round of affordable housing calculations for municipalities, which puts Cape May County’s share at 992 units.
*The Ocean City Council has awarded a $6.1 million contract for the construction of a new police substation at Eighth Street and the Boardwalk.
*Five members of a Villas family were hospitalized with serious injuries after a crash on Route 347 south in Maurice River Township, State Police said.
*As the 2025 municipal budget season kicks into gear there will be serious challenges facing budget formulators. The way they meet those challenges will ultimately come down upon the property tax payer.
*A Marmora woman who was bicycling was struck and killed by a car in South Carolina on Wednesday, Oct. 30.
*A Superior Court judge is compelling the deposition of Mayor Judith Davies-Dunhour in the whistleblower suit filed against the borough by its former administrator, Robert Smith.
*The 2024 election saw a strong embrace of early voting by the electorate nationally, statewide and in Cape May County.
Spout Off of the Week
Sea Isle City – To the woman who refused to accept my apology while I was riding my bike. You honked, I apologized, you called me an expletive. My husband and I have been laughing about it for hours. You are my unicorn. I’ve seen videos of Karen’s in the wild and you did not disappoint.
