Photo courtesy of the Jersey City Education Association Political Action Committee.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The Jersey City Education Association Political Action Committee (JCEA PAC) is endorsing Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea (D-2) for mayor in the 2025 contest that is still roughly two years away.
“It is with great pleasure to announce that the JCEA PAC has officially endorsed Bill O’Dea for Mayor of Jersey City. Bill O’Dea’s record of service to education in Jersey City is well documented throughout his political career. We are excited at the prospect of having a leader such as Bill in City Hall,” JCEA PAC Chair Mike Greco said in a statement.
“Furthermore, his main opponent constantly surrounds his campaign with former Christie allies who have set the educational system back decades. He even had Steve Sweeney, one of the architects of the Ch. 78 healthcare reform plan, which decimated teacher salaries and is a direct link to the unprecedented teacher shortage, headline his mayoral announcement.”
Greco took aim at former Gov. Jim McGreevey without saying his name, indicating that his first quarter mayoral fundraising haul of about $850,000 will consist of vendors and consultants “who will surely be looking to insert their influence and use our schools to gain wealth and power.”
The McGreevey campaign could not immediately be reached on Tuesday morning.
The endorsement of O’Dea has been telegraphed for weeks, with Greco serving as the emcee at the commissioner’s mayoral campaign kickoff, which also included remarks from Kristen Zadroga Hart.
She is a ranking member of the JCEA and the O’Dea for mayor campaign’s committee chair who is rumored to be on the council ticket.
Council President Joyce Watterman is currently the only other declared candidate in the November 4th, 2025 contest, with Hudson County Commissioner Jerry Walker, Ward E Councilman James Solomon, and former Board of Education President Mussab Ali also possible entrants into the non-partisan race.
