Newark Council to Discuss Next Steps in Wake of Booker's Senate Decision

The Newark Municipal Council is expected to discuss the selection of a council president at a conference meeting Tuesday, a decision that has taken on added significance since Mayor Cory Booker declared his intention Saturday to run for US Senate in a special election later this year.

The council has been without a president since last November, when Donald Payne Jr. left the governing body after winning election to Congress.

The remaining eight members of the governing body were stalemated over selecting a replacement. When Booker attempted to appoint a ninth member to the council at a council meeting Nov. 20, 2012, a near-riot ensued, stoked by anger from those who felt that Booker was overstepping his authority. Four members of the council were opposed to his choice.

After a judge ruled against Booker’s appointment, the council seat has remained vacant and there still is no council president, although Councilman Anibal Ramos, who had been the council vice-president, has been performing the functions of the office, including presiding over council meetings.

Should Booker get elected to the Senate in October, there will still be several months left in his mayoral term, which expires in mid-2014. An acting mayor would have to be appointed by the council, with the successful candidate needing at least five votes, according to an official with the city clerk's office.

If no candidate gets five votes, the governing body’s rules state that the council president ascends to acting mayor. But in the absence of a council president, the situation remains unclear legally, the offiical also said.

Two members of the governing body, Ramos and South Ward Councilman Ras Baraka, are both running for mayor in 2014, as is Shavar Jeffries, a former president of the school advisory board.

Tuesday’s meeting is scheduled to begin at 10 am at city hall.