Jersey City Mayoral Candidate Profiles And Q&A: Jim McGreevey

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Seven candidates are facing off to become Jersey City's next mayor, replacing outgoing Mayor Steve Fulop.

The candidates range from current council members to a former governor of New Jersey to a police officer.

Patch is posting profiles and Q&A of the candidates who responded to our questions by the deadline. All candidates had the chance to respond. Below is one of our profiles. To read all of them, and our previous coverage, go here.

Got thoughts on the race? You can post letters, events, and releases on Jersey City Patch for free. Here are the instructions.

The election will be held on Nov. 4.

Also, did you know that you can input your email and get a free daily roundup of all the Jersey City news we published, sent to your inbox at 6 a.m. each morning? Get it here.

Candidate Profile

Name: Jim McGreevey
Age: 68
Length of time you've lived in the city: 10 years

Public service: Assemblyman, 1990–1991; Mayor of Woodbridge, 1991–2001; State Senator, 1994–1998; Governor of New Jersey, 2002–2004; Executive Director of the New Jersey Reentry Corporation (NJRC), 2014–Present; Chair of the Jack & Ronnie McGreevey Civic Association, 2021–Present
Family: (father; deceased) Jack McGreevey, U.S. Marine, Veterans' Liaison of the 19th Legislative District in New Jersey; (mother; deceased) Veronica “Ronnie” McGreevey, Charge Nurse, Jersey City Medical Center; (sister) Sharon McGreevey, Director of Veterans Outreach Initiative, NJRC; (daughters) Morag McGreevey, attorney, and Jacqueline McGreevey, graduate student.
Do you have immediate family members working for local government? Who? Not presently.
Do you have a full-time job? If so, what is it? If not, how do you earn a living? Yes, since 2014, I have served as the Founder, Executive Director, and Chairman of the Board of NJRC (a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation), which provides wrap-around case management, legal, medical, mental health, addiction, and social services to court-involved persons, those in recovery from addiction, and veterans returning from the theater of combat.
How many properties do you own, and where are they? None, I rent in Jersey City.
Educational background: B.A., Columbia University, 1979; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 1981; M.Ed., Harvard University Graduate School of Education, 1982; Master of Divinity, General Theological Seminary, 2013
Other experience: Assistant Prosecutor, Middlesex County Special Victims Unit (1980s); Merck & Co., Corporate Compliance/Legal (1980s); Executive Director, New Jersey State Parole Board (1985); General Theological Seminary, Pastoral Education, Cabrini Social Services, New York City (2005–2007)
If you are supporting a ticket of council candidates, please state their names: Brandi Warren (Ward A), Efrain Orleans (Ward B), Councilman Rich Boggiano (Ward C), Catherine Healy (Ward D), Ryan Baylock (Ward E), Reverend Gloria Walton (Ward F), Meredith Burns (At-Large), Sgt. Israel Nieves (At-Large), Detective Jennise Sarmiento (At-Large); Aimee Sharrock (Jersey City Board of Education, “For Stronger Schools”)
Website where voters can find more information: https://jim2025.com/

Longer Questions. Answers must be kept to 250 words or fewer.

1. Since all of the candidates have experience with local or state government, the voters may not know the differences. Please tell us what makes you more qualified for the job than all of your opponents. [Please answer directly after the question, here, in 250 words or fewer.]
Experience matters only when it delivers results. As Mayor of Woodbridge, I balanced budgets without raising taxes, reduced crime through community policing, and revitalized business corridors while protecting neighborhoods and open space. As Governor, I built coalitions to deliver lasting reforms: NJ STARS opened college to working families; the Highlands Act safeguarded clean drinking water; and expanded the Transit Village initiative.
Those lessons on how to manage complex budgets, build consensus, and produce measurable outcomes are exactly what Jersey City needs. Our city faces challenges of affordability, infrastructure, and quality of life. I’ve spent a lifetime learning how to make government work for people, not the other way around.
I will apply that experience to protect tenants, modernize our water and sewer systems, expand early literacy and vocational education, and make our streets safer through transparent, data-driven policing. The difference is not in holding office. It’s in knowing how to govern effectively. I’ve done it before, and I’ll do it again for Jersey City.

2. What is the biggest problem in Jersey City, and how will you address it?
The biggest problem is affordability, the risk that the people who built Jersey City can no longer afford to stay. The lesson of my career is that affordability depends on sound management: stable budgets, fair rents, and long-term investment.
I will create a Tenant Advocacy Unit in the Mayor’s Office to protect our renters and partner with state, nonprofit, and faith-based agencies to build affordable and senior housing. I will finance infrastructure upgrades through the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank, thereby avoiding emergency repairs that would otherwise drive up taxes and rents.
Good government can make living in Jersey City sustainable by planning, not reacting; by protecting residents, not developers; and by investing today so families can stay tomorrow.

3. For whom did you vote in the 2024 presidential election? How do you see national politics affecting Jersey City in the next few years, and how will you respond?
I voted for Kamala Harris. From decades in public service, I have learned that leadership begins with listening to local residents, budgeting responsibly, and solving problems one block at a time.
As mayor, my focus will remain on local, safer streets, better schools, reliable infrastructure, and affordable homes. However, I understand how federal and state programs can strengthen our city when utilized effectively. I’ve worked with every level of government, and I know how to secure resources without surrendering local priorities.
I will leverage new state housing credits, federal HUD grants, and infrastructure funding to build affordable homes and upgrade water and sewer systems, reducing long-term costs for taxpayers. I’ll bring those resources home because I know how the process works and how to make government deliver results.
My goal is to keep Jersey City focused on what matters: opportunity, safety, and dignity for every resident.

4. Do you believe the city has done a good job addressing crime? Which changes, if any, would you make?
No. The first rule of public safety is transparency; you can’t fix what you don’t measure. Crime data is incomplete, and public confidence is eroding. As someone who has served as an assistant prosecutor, I understand both the law enforcement perspective and the importance of accountability to the public.
I will require full publication of CompStat data, modernize 911 systems, and equip officers with real-time technology. Community policing must be reinstated, with motorcycle and bicycle patrols and partnership with schools and small businesses.
We must also reform how we respond to mental-health crises. Through the ARRIVE Together initiative and mental helath step-down units, we can better serve residents in distress.
Safety requires partnership between police, social services, and the community. That’s the kind of coordinated, accountable system I’ve built before and will bring to Jersey City.

5. Do you believe the city is doing enough to protect renters from high increases and/or evictions? If not, what else should the city do?
The city has fallen short. Too many tenants still face illegal rent hikes and eviction threats. Experience teaches that laws only matter if they’re enforced.
I will cap annual increases at fair, predictable levels and strengthen oversight of landlords who claim “capital improvements” to justify excessive rents.
Just as important, I will create a Tenant Advocacy and Enforcement Unit within the Mayor’s Office, attorneys whose sole mission is to protect residents from wrongful eviction and retaliation.
But protection alone is not enough; we must build more affordable homes for families and seniors.
Housing security is the foundation of stability. Jersey City deserves leadership that knows how to turn compassion into enforceable policy.

6. Social media is ever changing, and reports said that X, for example, lost at least 3 million users last year. Where do you think the city should post messages to the public first? How else should the city communicate?
The most effective communication isn’t digital, it’s personal. I’ve learned that trust in government begins with showing up. For the past two summers, I’ve walked Jersey City block by block, meeting families, seniors, and small-business owners. As mayor, I’ll continue walking through every neighborhood each summer and hold monthly town halls across the city, allowing residents in every ward to speak directly with their mayor.
I’ll also hold weekly morning coffee hours for informal conversations, partner with schools, libraries, and community centers to share information, and distribute bilingual newsletters for residents who are less online.
Technology still matters. The city must provide clear and timely updates through its official website, multilingual text and email alerts, and accessible social media platforms.
Our government should meet people where they are, on the sidewalk, in the park, or in a café. Transparent, personal, and consistent communication is how we rebuild confidence in City Hall.

7. What is a creative idea to improve life in Jersey City for its residents that no one else has thought of?
“Jersey City Reads Together” will make every library the hub of a citywide early-literacy network, modeled after Atlanta, one of the nation’s premier cities for comprehensive literacy initiatives. Families will receive Family Reading Accounts linking free books, reading coaches, and bilingual programs through neighborhood libraries. By uniting schools, universities, and community partners, we’ll ensure every Jersey City child reads on grade level by third grade.

8. Have you taken developer contributions to your campaign? Do you think it's a problem for a candidate to take them?
Development must serve residents, not donors. My campaign accepts contributions from many Jersey City neighbors, teachers, union members, small business owners, and yes, some in real estate, but no donation buys influence. I keep fundraising and policy strictly separate, support full transparency, and will always base decisions on what benefits our neighborhoods: affordable housing, open space, and infrastructure, not political favors.

9. Which toppings do you normally get on your pizza, and what are some things that should never go on a pizza?
When I eat out, I’m not picky; a good Jersey City slice always hits the spot. My go-to toppings are sausage, peppers, meatballs, ricotta, and mushrooms: classic, simple, and satisfying.
What never belongs on pizza? Brussel sprouts.
But what truly makes pizza, or a city, great isn’t the topping; it’s the care put into it. Jersey City’s neighborhoods are similar: every block adds its own flavor, and together they make something extraordinary.

Other Information

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