Somers Point voters should not be complacent for the primary election Tuesday, June 5. Voters will decide who gets to be the candidate of choice at the federal level for the Democrat and Republican parties.
Two candidates are vying for U.S. Senator in the Democrat party. Incumbent Robert Menendez is facing a challenge from Lisa A. McCormick.
After a federal prosecutor dismissed charges that Menendez used his office to benefit a wealthy doctor, he said he was “vindicated” when the judge declared a mistrial. However, a Senate Ethics Committee “severely admonished” Menendez for accepting gifts while using his office to benefit the doctor.
Menendez, seeking his third six-year term, is running on improving wages and healthcare, finance and immigration reform and protecting New Jersey’s coastal environment.
McCormick, a progressive who has a background in industrial engineering and is publisher of CMD Media’s njtoday.net, is running to give voters an alternative. She is running to improve the quality of life for the middle class by offering free college education, justice reform and universal health care. She wants to repair the “broken political system” and reduce spending for the military.
For the Republican party, Bob Hugin is facing a challenge from Brian D. Goldberg.
Hugin, a former U.S. Marine and CEO of Celgene Corporation, a global biopharmaceutical company, is also on the boards of Princeton University and Family Promise and has received endorsements from all county committees.
He opposes President Donald Trump on cutting children’s healthcare and relief for Hurricane Sandy victims, and is running on tax relief, improving infrastructure, job creation, healthcare reform and restoring integrity in government.
Goldberg is the “Make America Great Again” candidate and supports building a border wall. He is running for lower taxes, job creation and a strong national defense. He is a member of the NRA, pro-life and supports defunding Planned Parenthood.
The big race in NJ-D2 is for Republican Frank LoBiondo’s seat in the House of Representatives. LoBiondo, who lives in Ventnor, announced earlier this year that he would not seek re-election after 23 years in Congress.
On the Democrat side, Jeff Van Drew, who has served as a New Jersey senator for 10 years, has three challengers – Nate Kleinman, William Cunningham and Tanzie Youngblood.
Van Drew, a practicing dentist who is also a former mayor of Dennis Township and NJ Assemblyman, wants to be a congressman for all South Jersey residents regardless of their party affiliation, he said.
“I want to be the kind of congressman who reaches across the aisle to do what’s right for the entire country,” he said in a statement. He has received endorsements from party chairs in all communities in the district. He worked to remove three traffic lights from the Garden State Parkway in Cape May County, save jobs at the Vineland Developmental Center and advocated for veterans to receive health care locally.
Kleinman is “A Different Kind of Candidate.” A farmer, and self-proclaimed innovator and activist, Keinman is calling for single-payer healthcare and a universal basic income. He wants social justice for the poor and oppressed and would work to support women’s rights and the disabled.
Cunningham, of Vineland, was a policy staffer for Sen. Corey Booker and is a progressive with “True Democratic Values.” A former teacher, Cunningham would work to improve education, develop a “robust” jobs plan that focuses on energy and includes paid family leave. He would work to raise the minimum wage, protect Medicare and Social Security and stand up to the NRA, he said.
Hoping to ride the wave of women entering the political arena, Youngblood is a Blue Star mother. She has been a teacher in the public schools for more than 30 years and is concerned about violence in the schools. Her priorities are gun safety, caring for veterans, creating financial security for the middle class, investing in rural areas and the environment. She was featured on the cover of Time as one of the many women who marched for women’s rights and are now running as progressives.
On the Republican side there are four challengers Samuel Fiocchi, Seth Grossman, Hirsh V. Singh, and Robert D. Turkavage.
Fiocci, a former NJ assemblyman and Cumberland County freeholder, supports President Trump because he believes his policies are working. He is stressing the need for lower taxes, job creation and economic development. He stands on his track record of winning tough elections.
Grossman, an attorney in Somers Point and founder of Liberty and Prosperity.org, supports President Trump and would work to reduce legal immigration levels, repeal the Affordable Care Act and allow qualified teachers to carry weapons. He is a former Atlantic City Councilman and an Atlantic County freeholder.
Singh, a businessman in the aviation industry who lives in Linwood and was raised in Atlantic City, has an agenda that focuses on ending over-regulation and big government bureaucracy. He wants lower taxes, and supports veterans, American troops and supports President Trump. He calls himself a “problem solver, not a politician.”
A former FBI agent for 32 years, Turkavage, known as “Turk,” lives in Brigantine and is involved as a Court Appointed Special Advocate, Knights of Columbus and volunteers for open water swimming events.
He would work to strengthen Social Security for older workers, but reform it for those just starting their careers. He would work to lower ACA premiums and Medicare by identifying cost-containment issues, reduce the deficit through a balanced budget, ensure a quality missile defense and cyber security. He believes life begins at conception and supports abortion only when “absolutely necessary to protect another life or lives.”
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