Fulop's Anti-Corruption Plan Slams NJ Democratic Party Bosses: 'It's Clearly Wrong'

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey governor candidate Steve Fulop on Monday unveiled a plan to "root out" political corruption in New Jersey, focusing on public records transparency, financial disclosure, and stopping conflicts of interest (particularly among county political "bosses").

"The next governor should be held accountable," said Jersey City Mayor Fulop in a virtual press conference on Monday. "I feel like we will hold ourselves and others responsible."

On Norcross, Menendez, Jones, McCabe, And Stack

The announcement came just a week after the indictment of longtime South Jersey Democratic political boss George Norcross, but Fulop said the timing was a coincidence. He cited other scandals, such as the bribery indictment last year of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, and the 2009 "Operation Bid Rig" New Jersey political sting.

Notably, he said that he hopes to eradicate conflicts of interest on the part of powerful officials, citing county Democratic"bosses" who earned money lobbying the legislators they'd helped get elected.

In his position paper, he mentioned the names of LeRoy Jones, the Democratic Chairman in Essex County, and five-time Middlesex County Democratic Organization Chairman Kevin McCabe, although he didn't get specific about their conflicts.

Fulop said he hopes the officials he criticizes will still support what he's doing.

"I've had a relationship with some of them for ten-plus years," said the former Marine, who became a councilman in Jersey City in 2005. "But that doesn't change the fact that this needs to change... It's not meant to alienate them. It's something we can work together to improve. It's clearly wrong."

Fulop said, "I believe there should be clarity on how people are making their money," pushing for financial disclosures from officials, although he said they didn't necessarily have to release their tax returns.

Fulop also spoke about George Norcross, saying he had terminated his brother Phil's firm in 2014.

As for Menendez, "I ran against Menendez [for Congress] in 2004," he said. "I had a very very complicated relationship with him for some time. It got better when he was in the Senate. [After his first indictment], rather than being remorseful and thinking about the judicial system and how he got a second chance, third chance, he made comments about people looking to jump into the fray [against him], which the press thought were targeted at myself and Sen. Robert Torricelli."

Reporters asked him about his relationship with Assemblyman and Union City Mayor Brian Stack, a powerful force in Hudson County politics. He said Stack would probably be hot and cold with him until Stack himself decided whether to run for governor.

Against 'Tokenizing'

Fulop said he'd chose a lieutenant governor candidate some time before the primary in 2025.

When asked if he'd pick a woman or someone for racial balance, Fulop said, "When people tokenize a position ... I think it diminishes our communities and diminishes the position. We are going to look for the best candidate, period. I think that's what New Jersey deserves."

Fulop released his full policy paper, “Strengthening Our Democracy and Meaningful Government Reform," here.

Fulop himself has faced criticism, from allegations that he downplayed crime in Jersey City through the years, to recent accusations about a marijuana dispensary proposal in Hoboken, which would operate in a storefront owned by his wife. Fulop has denied influencing the dispensary approval process. Read more about those issues here.