Monmouth Senate Candidate Dnistrian Worked For Offshore Wind Industry

LONG BRANCH, NJ — This November, state Senator Vin Gopal, the Democrat who represents southern Monmouth County, will try to hold onto his seat in the Senate, representing Legislative District 11.

He will be challenged by Republican Steve Dnistrian, who is calling for a moratorium on New Jersey's offshore wind industry.

However, this week Politico published this exclusive report that Dnistrian once worked for a company that builds transmission lines to connect offshore wind energy to New Jersey's power grid.

Dnistrian owns a public relations firm, STEVE brand + strategic communication LLC. From January to November 2022, he was a paid consultant for LS Power Grid, which was one of 13 companies that vied to get a contract from the state to build power lines to bring wind energy ashore. LS Power Grid did not get the contract.

In March 2023, he announced he would run for the state Senate seat held by Gopal.

Dnistrian did not deny he worked for LS Power Grid. He told Patch he was hired by the company in part to gauge public opinion of Monmouth County residents as to whether or not they favored the wind turbines (the majority of New Jersey residents do not, according to the latest Monmouth University poll.)

"I was lucky they were my client, as they made me incredibly well-informed on this issue. This was prior to the spike in whale and dolphin deaths that we've seen," the Republican candidate told Patch Wednesday. "In fact, if they were my client today, I would be urging (them) to support a moratorium (on offshore wind)."

“My role with LS Power has provided me with an unusual depth of knowledge about this issue to inform the debate and to stop playing politics and just try to be that reasonable center person that people are dying for,” Dnistrian told Politico's Matt Friedman.

Dnistrian said he is not against offshore wind, but he is calling for a halt to all NJ offshore wind exploration until independent research can be done on what is causing the increase in whale and dolphin deaths, and:

"I want transparency on how much this will cost ratepayers."

Dnistrian tweeted this Tuesday:

In light of Politico's report, on Tuesday Gopal issued a statement accusing his Republican opponent of hypocrisy.

“Voters deserve to know why he didn't disclose working for offshore wind while railing against it, and if he has other secret clients that he is not disclosing," said Gopal. "If we cannot trust that he will honestly discuss a major issue facing our shoreline, and clearly separate his personal financial interests from those of the public, how can families trust him to act in their interests over his own on any of the major issues facing their future?"

Dnistrian said he has told advocacy groups and Matt Rooney of conservative news site Save Jersey last week that he worked for "an energy company."

Gopal told Patch Wednesday he has "significant concerns as it relates to cost, sight, vision and actual construction" of wind turbines.

"But based on scientific data, I don't see any evidence of correlation between whales dying and offshore wind construction," Gopal told Patch this week. "Politicians are pushing conspiracy theories based on providing no evidence and trying to mislead the public ... That said, I'm very concerned about sight, vision, long-term costs to ratepayers and what happens to mammals and fish when actual construction starts."

“People across New Jersey residents are very concerned about what’s happening to our ocean, and as such, public support for offshore wind is decreasing,” Dnistrian said. “Also, people want to know what this multi-billion dollar undertaking is going to cost us when it shows up on our monthly electric bills because make no doubt, WE will foot the bill. But Gopal brushes aside public concerns about the ocean, doesn’t answer the question about cost and instead spends his time attacking those who challenge him. During a television interview, he called ocean advocates and elected officials from both parties ‘conspiracy theorists,’ simply because they believe there’s a possible connection between sonar mapping and dead mammals. I’ve met these people. They’re good, passionate people who love the Jersey Shore. Gopal demonstrated incredibly poor judgement when he insulted and demeaned these elected officials and community leaders. They just want answers, not insults.”

Jersey Shore wind turbine construction as it stands currently

Actual construction on wind turbines has not yet started in New Jersey. What has started is sonar mapping of the ocean floor, which Danish wind company Orsted starting doing in the past year off South Jersey.

But the moment, the fate of wind turbines off the Jersey Shore appears stalled: The Associated Press reported Aug. 31 Orsted said its first offshore wind farm will now be delayed until 2026 due to supply chain issues, higher interest rates and not getting enough tax breaks from the federal U.S. government. This summer, Gov. Murphy approved millions in tax breaks that Orsted requested from the state of New Jersey.

Both Gopal and Dnistrian are calling for an "investigation" into the effects offshore wind construction will have on New Jersey.

Do you live in Legislative District 11?

Legislative District 11, or "LD 11" as its called, includes all of southern Monmouth County, including Long Branch, Eatontown, Tinton Falls and Shrewsbury, among other towns. LD 11 is usually a battleground between Democrats and Republicans.

This year, the Democrats running to represent those towns in Trenton are Gopal for state Senate and Margie Donlon, a doctor, and Luanne Peterpaul, a lawyer, for Assembly.

The Republicans are Dnistrian, and Republican assemblywomen Marilyn Piperno and Kim Eulner, who currently hold the seats. The last time there was an election in LD 11, two years ago, Piperno and Eulner knocked off the two Democrat who held the Assembly seats, but Gopal was re-elected in an extremely close race: Gopal Declares Victory, Assembly Race Too Close To Call (Nov. 2021)