Camden County Democrats Jump into One Local Nonpartisan Race
On Friday, October 8, 2021, the Camden County Democrats took to various social media platforms to announce their endorsement of one of the slates running for Board of Education in the city of Camden. Apparently the entire county party is weighing in on this one local nonpartisan race. This begs a few questions such as: what was their endorsement process, when did they hold their vote, and what exactly comes with this endorsement? Once again, the Norcross political machine is putting its thumb on the scale of a local election. As always, big bucks hang in the balance.
Mostly White Suburban County Party Weighing In on a Mostly Minority Local City Race?
The Camden County Democratic Committee is composed of members from the county’s 35 municipalities (excluding the golf course communities of Pine Valley and Tavistock). The majority of Camden County residents are white and live in the suburbs. Camden County only has two cities within its borders — Gloucester City which is mostly white working class and Camden which is a minority majority city. There are 13 challenged Board of Elections races in Camden County this fall. The county party is weighing in on just this one local nonpartisan race in a city with demographics that look very different from the rest of the county. This ought to raise eyebrows.
Concerned About the Dem Issues — or About Supporting Charters & Silencing Critics?
If the Camden County Democrats were concerned with seeing Democratic policies prevail, the county party might have chosen to weigh in in Cherry Hill where a school board candidate with an advantageous ballot position is running under the Trumpian slogan “Unmask Our Children.” So why Camden? Camden’s school board is an advisory body since the district is under state control. However, school privatization continues to move at a fevered pitch.
Public schools continue to close as charter and renaissance schools proliferate throughout the city. This movement towards charter and renaissance schools was set in motion by the party boss’s younger brother, then state senator, now Congressman, Donald Norcross who sponsored the Urban Hope Act in 2012. The first KIPP charter school to open in the city did so with backing from Norcross and bears his name. Though a 2018 state audit noted significant problems with the operation of renaissance schools, they remain an avenue for private groups and investors to profit via taxpayer dollars.
Longtime community activist and Norcross machine critic Vida Neil is running in Column 5 in the Camden school board race. Vida has been vocal in opposing the shuttering of Camden’s public schools and the movement towards charters. More recently, Vida has criticized the machine for their handling of the sudden resignation of Camden Mayor Frank Moran. Her video Vic Don’t Live Here during the 2021 primary election raised concerns about the residency of then candidate, now mayor Vic Carstarphen who was shuffled into office after Moran stepped down.
Peeking into The Deep Pockets of the Camden County Machine
Though there’s no county line to award in a nonpartisan school board election, endorsement by the county party still comes with major benefits, the main one being money. In elections, money buys influence and infrastructure. Money buys pollsters, videographers, and graphic designers. It buys lawn signs, campaign lit, and swag. And if there’s one thing the Camden County Dems have a lot of, it’s money!
In just 2021, the Camden County Democrats raised $202,954.33 according to NJ ELEC. The majority of those funds come from four main revenue sources: firms that regularly get contracts with the county (“pay to play”), county employees who donate to the party running the government (the “spoils system”), the election funds of (EFO) machine candidates not currently on the ballot or running unopposed, and the building trades unions closely allied to Steve Sweeney. As a point of contrast, in 2021, the Camden County Republicans raised $10,010.00. Though this is a shockingly small number compared to the Camden County machine, it is comparable to the funds raised by county Democratic parties throughout South Jersey in 2021 (generally between $4,000 in Cape May to $35,000 in Atlantic and Burlington Counties, with Salem not reporting any 2021 funds). Two hundred thousand dollars is a big pot of money especially since the Camden County Dems aren’t running any campaigns for any of their state or county candidates up for reelection this cycle.
Endorsements Should Involve An Open Process
In my two years on Camden County Democratic Committee, I was part of two endorsement proceedings, both of which involved rubber stamping the party boss’s choices without any real deliberation. As then municipal chair, I decided to use my voice to advocate for an endorsement process that involved hearing from the candidates and asking them questions before awarding endorsement. Because no one else at those meetings lobbied for information or discussion before conferring the party line and funds to candidates, those meetings mostly consisted of Camden County Dems’ attorney Bill Tambussi bellowing “out of order” over my question-asking. In other counties, even elsewhere in South Jersey, there are real proceedings before endorsement. Camden County deserves a functioning democracy as well.
If you’re a Democrat in Camden County and want more information about how this endorsement decision was made, you can try to reach the county party or ask your local town Democratic Committee about their vote.