O’Dea Strongly Opposes Appointed School Board, Pledges to Protect Democracy in Jersey City
- Jul 17
- 1 min read
Mayoral Candidate Launches Petition to Stop Attempt by Political Machine to Silence Jersey City Residents
Mayoral candidate and County Commissioner Bill O’Dea is pledging to do everything in his power to stop a plan announced this week that would disenfranchise Jersey City voters by moving to an appointed Board of Education system. O’Dea and Council at-Large candidate Kristen Zadroga-Hart authored an Op-Ed piece today sharply criticizing the legislation announced by State Senator Raj Mukherji as an attempt by the political machine to silence residents and grab more power in Jersey City. Now, O’Dea is working to rally community opposition to the undemocratic plan with a petition drive to give residents the opportunity to join together and make their voices heard. The petition is available here:
“The political machine wants to take control away from the people by moving to an appointed school board, and this is an outrageous, undemocratic attack on our community that I will stop as Mayor,” said O’Dea. “The people of Jersey City deserve the right to choose our own elected leaders, and we won’t let the political machine dictate to us who will run our public schools. We will not sit back and let our community be disenfranchised, and we will do everything in our power to fight back and protect Jersey City’s fundamental right to remain a democracy.”
O’Dea is working with community members and stakeholders to organize a united front of opposition to the appointed school board plan, with additional steps to be announced soon.