Norcross Needs To Make Own Apology To Voters, Opponent Says

Republican Congressional Candidate Claire Gustafson is firing back at Rep. Donald Norcross (D-1) after Norcross called on Rep. Jeff Van Drew to apologize to South Jersey residents for his rumored party switch.

“While we wait and see what kind of Republican Jeff Van Drew will be, the last thing I will do is allow Donald Norcross to attack any Republican, nor anyone about to join the party,” Gustafson said in a statement Wednesday morning.

Gustafson is responding to Norcross’s statement that Van Drew owes an apology to all those who endorsed and supported him in last year's election victory, in which he defeated Republican Seth Grossman to claim the seat long-held by moderate Republican Frank LoBiondo.

Van Drew became the first Democrat elected to Congress in the Second Congressional District since William J. Hughes was in office from 1975-1994. However, he is reportedly set to announce he’s joining the Republican Party after he strayed from Democrats on key issues, such as his opposition to impeaching President Donald Trump.

He also followed through on a campaign promise he made not to vote for Pelosi in her efforts to be re-elected as Speaker of the House earlier this year. Read more: NJ Congressman Reportedly Switching From Democrat To Republican

On Monday morning, Norcross issued a statement in which he said Van Drew "is just plain wrong to support Trump's corrupt actions. I look forward to supporting the Democratic candidate next year who will truly represent South Jersey's values."

He also said Van Drew owes an apology to those who supported him in 2018, including groups like the AFL-CIO, NJEA, SEIU and End Citizens United, as well as Gov. Phil Murphy, Chairman Currie and New Jersey's representatives in Congress, as well as the people of South Jersey who thought he believed in the same things they do.

But Gustafson, a former Collingswood School Board Member who formally entered the race to challenge Norcross in the 2020 Congressional Elections earlier this month, said Norcross owes New Jersey’s voters an apology of his own.

“Norcross, when he announced he was running for Congress in February 2014 proudly proclaimed, ‘as Senator, I led the charge on getting the Economic Opportunity Act passed into law – a game-changing law that will help create thousands of jobs in our region,’” Gustafson said. “More recently, Norcross’s tune has changed and it’s been reported he is trying to downplay his role in getting the law that led to the tax incentive scandal passed.”

The Norcross Family has been at the center of an investigation into the tax incentives program by a task force appointed by Gov. Phil Murphy. Read more here: Troubles Surrounding NJ’s ‘Most Powerful Unelected’ Man?

A recent EDA analysis shows that 25 tax-break projects in Camden County produced just 27 jobs for Camden residents, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Seventy-six percent of the jobs produced went to New Jersey residents, and 25 percent of those jobs went to Camden County residents.

“I look forward to seeing Norcross on the campaign trail, listening to him apologize to the people of South Jersey and getting an explanation as to where those thousands of jobs are,” Gustafson said.

Van Drew’s rumored defection from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party has drawn a range of responses, and Democrats aren’t the only ones unhappy with his decision. Republicans have expressed skepticism, including Gloucester County Republican Party Chairwoman Jacci Vigilante. She called on Van Drew todenounce George Norcrossafter years of benefitting from the South Jersey political machine.

See related: Pro-Trump Republican Mulls Congressional Run Against Norcross