Candidates, and their high profile surrogates including a former President, made one last push to get out the vote over the weeknd for the crucial House midterm elections. Rep. Josh Gottheimer was joined in Paramus on Nov. 5 by his former boss, Bill Clinton, as he attempts to secure a fourth term for the North Jersey district made up of Bergen, Passaic and Sussex counties. “ I’m really proud of the record he’s established. I like what he said about always being willing to seek bipartisan solutions,” said Clinton. GOP nominee for the 5th District Frank Pallotta offered two of his own high-profile Republicans endorsing the Mahwah businessman: former Vice President Mike Pence and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. North-JerseyNews.com
Donald Trump again teased a forthcoming launch of a comeback presidential campaign but stopped short of formally announcing his bid on the eve of the midterm elections. “I’m going to be making a very big announcement on Tuesday November 15 at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida,” he said at the end of a more than 90-minute rally speech in Ohio. “In 2024, we are going to take back our magnificent White House.” Trump didn’t specify he would be the one to do it and claimed he didn’t want to distract from today’s elections but spent much of the event talking up his accomplishments and assailing opponents, both political and legal. The Wall Street Journal
Speaker Nancy Pelosi described the first terrifying moments after she learned from the Capitol Police of the attack on her husband inside their San Francisco home on Oct. 28, and said that the traumatic episode would affect her decision about her political future. Pelosi said there was a parallel between the actions and beliefs of the attacker and those of the thousands of people who participated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol last year, describing both as flames that were “fueled by misinformation. This is not a path that we can continue on. And we want people to run for office, local or in every way, and you can’t say to them, ‘You’re risking the safety of your families by going forward’.” The New York Times
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey unveiled an election day program to both protect election workers and voting rights. U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger announced the public can call the Office’s Election Day Hotline at 1-888-636-6596 to report voting rights concerns and threats against elections officials. The hotline would take calls from anyone with a report of activity that would interfere with the right to vote. Sellinger noted the hotline would be active through Nov. 11, and would be staffed live for Election Day on Nov. 8. “Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy,” Sellinger said. “Citizens must be free to vote without interference or discrimination, and election officials must be free to serve without threats of violence.” North-JerseyNews.com
Stronger Fairer Forward PAC, formed to help candidates who support Gov. Phil Murphy’s issues of affordability, has contributed more than $300,000 to campaigns this cycle, including $100,000 to the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State to help with ballot initiatives affecting voting rights issues. In New Jersey, the PAC has contributed to Reps. Tom Malinowski, Andy Kim, Josh Gottheimer and Mikie Sherrill, all frontline congressional candidates facing competitive races. The Murphy-allied PAC has also donated to three Democratic governors – Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Laura Kelley of Kansas and Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico – as well as Democratic gubernatorial candidates in Florida and Nevada, and Democratic candidates for Secretary of State in Georgia, Nevada, and Colorado. New Jersey Globe
Just over 725,000 New Jerseyans have already voted in this year’s election, according to state officials. Most residents who’ve already cast their ballots did so by mail. As of Nov. 7, county election officials around the state had received 511,676 completed mail-in ballots out of 973,240 sent to voters. That number will continue to rise through Election Day and for six days thereafter. During the state’s nine-day voting period, 213,919 voters cast their ballots at early-voting polling places. New Jersey Monitor
While most Americans, and especially parents of school-aged children, are satisfied with their local schools, teaching about gender diversity and about the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people has generated more opposition than any other, according to a New York Times poll. Four in 10 respondents opposed such instruction, and the same share supported it (the rest weren’t sure). One group of people was more likely to oppose teaching about sensitive social issues and want more parental control in schools: people who said schools were closed too long during the pandemic, particularly conservatives. The New York Times
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was open to negotiations with Russia if they are focused on safeguarding Ukraine’s territorial integrity, compensating Kyiv and bringing to justice perpetrators of war crimes. Zelensky’s statement comes after the U.S. officials have urged Kyiv to publicly signal that it is open to talks with Moscow, to avoid alienating international opinion. “One more time: restoration of territorial integrity, respect for the U.N. charter, compensation for all material losses caused by the war, punishment for every war criminal and guarantees that this does not happen again,” Zelensky said. “Those are completely understandable conditions.” The Wall Street Journal
Lawmakers and law enforcement officials were on hand Nov. 7 for Gov. Phil Murphy’s announcement on legislative steps to combat auto thefts that have plagued the state over the last year. Murphy said while earlier steps had reduced thefts by 14% in September and 12% in October from each of those months a year ago, more was needed to break a cycle that has seen juveniles being used by ring leaders. The steps being offered by the governor’s office include establishing a persistent auto theft offender statute, making possession and distribution of certain auto theft tools a crime, and imposing criminal penalties for the failure to comply with certain guidelines in the sale and purchase of catalytic converters. “People are sending us a clear message that this is something that they are truly worried about,” said Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-19). “We realized this is a challenge to every community in the state and puts people at risk….We must double down on this to make it end.” North-JerseyNews.com
In a highly critical report, inspectors found the state’s Veteran’s Memorial Home at Menlo Park placed some residents in “immediate jeopardy” over serious shortcomings in care — citing the nursing home for incredible medical mistakes, abuse of a resident who had not received medication, and improper infection controls to stop a new COVID outbreak. In one incident, a registered nurse who apparently did not know how to remove a catheter—a skill taught in nursing school—simply cut it with a scissor. The resident ended up in the emergency room. NJ.com
Monkeypox contributed to the October death of a North Jersey resident who had other underlying medical conditions, the state Department of Health said Monday. It is the first monkeypox-related death in New Jersey and one of nine nationwide, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New Jersey has reported 754 cases since the disease was first reported in June, with 49 people hospitalized. Hudson and Essex counties have had the most cases, followed by Union, Middlesex and Bergen. The Daily Record
The Prospect Park Board of Education has approved a three-year contract with Tyeshia Reels, who has assumed the dual roles of principal and superintendent of the local school. Reels was first hired to be superintendent in an acting capacity after the retirement of former school Superintendent Allison Angermeyer in January. The principal position was vacated in July by Kerri Waibel, who is now the principal of Brooklake School, serving third, fourth and fifth grades in Florham Park. The Record
The drawing for the record-setting $1.9 billion Powerball was delayed due to a “technical problem.” The Multi-State Lottery Association put out a statement saying one participating lottery is still processing its sales and play data causing the delay. “Due to the length of the draw delay, it is likely that we will not know the official results of the Powerball drawing until Tuesday morning,” according to the statement. New Jersey Herald
A bipartisan bill moving in the Legislature would not make online legalized casino gambling permanent in New Jersey, but instead would allow it to occur for at least another 10 years. Advocates who want to see online casino gambling remain legal in New Jersey say it has provided a key lifeline for the industry in Atlantic City, including during the economic shutdowns ordered by Gov. Phil Murphy throughout the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, concerns are being raised about increasing rates of gambling addiction and whether more should be done to help problem gamblers who no longer have to drive to Atlantic City to place their bets. NJ Spotlight News
A Hoboken business group is looking to breathe new life into the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in the city, but it’s contingent residents’ approval and on driving a popular annual pub crawl from the city. The Hoboken Business Alliance (HBA) has created a survey for residents and non-residents alike, asking if they’d like to see a family-friendly version of the first-Saturday-in-March event return after an 11-year hiatus. The city St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee canceled the 2012 parade after city officials, frustrated by the drunken debauchery that had become an annual event after the parade. The Jersey Journal
And finally…The Farmers’ Almanac is calling for a snowy Winter in North Jersey this year. NJ1015.com
