Bloomfield Councilman Criticizes ‘Deceptive’ Mayoral Straw Poll

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — A Bloomfield town councilman is raising questions about the selection process to replace former mayor Michael Venezia in the wake of a turbulent Bloomfield Democratic Committee meeting.

Venezia captured a seat in the New Jersey Assembly in November. He resigned from his post as Bloomfield mayor earlier this month, as required by law. See Related: Bloomfield Mayor Resigns, Begins New Post As NJ Assemblyman

On Wednesday evening, the Bloomfield Democratic Committee convened to consider nominations for the town’s vacant mayoral seat. They ultimately came up with three nominees to recommend to the Bloomfield Township Council: Jenny Mundell (41 votes), Ted Gamble (16 votes) and Nicole Williams (two votes). There were six abstentions.

It will now be up to the town council to decide who to appoint to fill the rest of Venezia’s term, which was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2025. A decision is expected Monday.

After Wednesday’s meeting, Venezia issued a statement in support of the apparent frontrunner, Mundell, who represents the town’s First Ward on the council. She would be the first female mayor in Bloomfield, if chosen.

“I urge the members of the township council to respect the clear majority opinion of the Bloomfield Democratic Committee and vote to appoint councilwoman Jenny Mundell as our next mayor,” the assemblyman said.

• See Related: Frontrunner Emerges For Vacant Bloomfield Mayor Seat

COUNCILMAN QUESTIONS STRAW POLL, PROCEDURE

But according to at-large council member Ted Gamble, the consensus among local Democrats is far from unanimous.

Wednesday’s committee meeting was marked with “unnecessary and unprecedented” motions, including the committee’s straw poll, Gamble told Patch. And the town’s voters need to know what is happening behind the curtain, he says.

“On Wednesday, chairman Venezia called a meeting with the Bloomfield Democratic Committee with no agenda and proceeded to tell attendees that the purpose of the meeting was to appoint the next mayor of Bloomfield,” Gamble said.

The problem? According to Gamble, appointing the mayor isn’t the committee’s role as per the Municipal Vacancy Law (N.J.S.A. 40A:16-11) and the guidance provided by Bloomfield’s township attorney, which states:

• No later than 15 days after the occurrence of the vacancy, the Bloomfield Democratic Municipal Committee shall present to the governing body the names of three nominees for the selection of a successor to fill the vacancy.
• The governing body shall, within 30 days after the occurrence of the vacancy, appoint one of the nominees as the successor to fill the vacancy.
• If the governing body fails to appoint one of the nominees within the time prescribed herein, the Bloomfield Democratic Municipal Committee shall, within the next 15 days, appoint one of the nominees as the successor to fill the vacancy, and such person shall be sworn in immediately.
• If the Bloomfield Democratic Municipal Committee fails to submit the names of the nominees within the time prescribed herein, the governing body may, within the next 15 days, fill the vacancy by the appointment of a successor from the same political party which had nominated the incumbent whose office has become vacant.

“In addition to this subversion of the process, basic parliamentary procedures were not followed during the meeting,” Gamble alleged.

There was never a proper motion or a second to take up a straw poll by the committee, and members were allowed to cast ballots prior to hearing from the candidates and leave the meeting early, he said.

Meanwhile, Gamble said that motions from the floor were ignored multiple times, and discussion was “abruptly cut off” by Venezia.

“It was not until committee members pointed out that there was no past precedence of conducting a straw poll at this point in the process that the chairman allowed a motion to move forward,” Gamble said.

The councilman continued:

“I commend committee members who put forth motions multiple times and held the committee accountable to their legal obligation to present to the governing body the names of three nominees for the selection of a successor to fill the vacancy. Ultimately, the Bloomfield Democratic Committee took a floor vote and unanimously moved three nominees forward to the township council, fulfilling their legal obligation in the nomination process. Although unnecessary and unprecedented in Bloomfield, the chairman pushed forward with the straw poll. Again, there was no motion or a second to conduct the straw poll, and the chain of custody of the ballot box was broken due to the fact it left its position at the front of the room and was taken outside of the room into the hallway multiple times.”

Gamble said that there were no straw polls conducted when Mundell took over for former council member Elias Chalet, who was sentenced to five years in state prison in 2018 for soliciting and accepting a bribe from a local business owner.

Likewise, there was no straw poll carried out when Richard Rockwell was appointed to take Carlos Pomares’ seat after Pomares was elected to the Essex County Board of Commissioners.

“I find the attempt to distort the process upsetting and the narrative put forward by my colleagues deceptive,” Gamble told Patch.

“As a member of the governing body who has taken an oath to support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the state of New Jersey, it is my obligation to follow the process set forth in the laws of the state of New Jersey,” Gamble said.

“I will honor that process and vote on the three names provided to the governing body in my best judgement, an obligation bestowed on me as a duly elected public official,” he added.

The next meeting of the Bloomfield Township Council will take place at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 22 at the council chambers in the municipal building, 1 Municipal Plaza.

• See Related: Bloomfield Democrats Seek Replacement For Mayor Venezia
• See Related: Bloomfield Mayor Hopefuls Campaign For Job; Council Decision Looms
  

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