The Curious Case For and Against S3838.

A deep dive into the bill that seeks to ban Sheriffs & Clerks from also serving as head of County Political Organizations.

Bill S3838, recently introduced by Senator Vin Gopal, seeks to prohibit the County Clerk, Sheriff, and Surrogate from simultaneously serving as their County political party Chairman, Co-Chairman or Vice Chairman. Although seemingly innocuous, this legislation has become highly contentious with the Democrats banding together in support of it while the Republicans have mostly rallied against it.

Before we proceed, EVERYONE reading this needs to realize something important. That is that BOTH the Democrats and Republicans are handling this matter incorrectly. Although deadlocks along party lines aren’t uncommon, it’s disconcerting in this particular instance because this should be an obvious and EASY win for the GOP. In fact, all winning requires is genuine integrity and a strategic willingness to compromise.

HOW NJ REPUBLICANS ARE WRONG:

Taking the specific ramifications for any individual (ex. Monmouth GOP Chairman/Sheriff Shaun Golden) out of the equation, this legislation has merit. A May 2023 poll by FDU showed that a whopping 80% of NJ residents believe that state politicians are corrupt to some degree. Moreover, the same poll found that people living in our coastal counties (ex. Monmouth, Atlantic, Cape May, Ocean) are most likely to say their leaders are VERY CORRUPT! NJ politicians who truly care about election integrity and preventing corruption need to act honorably and start proving themselves to the electorate. In my humble opinion, a leader who is honest about preventing corruption couldn’t possibly believe that it is responsible for a County Sheriff or Clerk to also serve concurrently as the head of a County political party.

This is especially true when one takes the County line into consideration. With the lone exception of New Jersey, every other state has prohibited County political lines due to the fact that they offer a significantly unfair advantage to the candidates on it. Although the policy related to determining the line varies by county, it goes without saying that the head of a County political organization plays an oversized role in the process and in some circumstances can unilaterally decide who is on the line. It’s in no way ridiculous to believe that a County Chairman should never be in a situation where he could run for County Clerk or Sheriff and bestow the line and all its unfair advantages to himself. Moreover, the office of the County Sheriff and County Clerk play an integral role in our elections and in our courts. Due to the independent nature required of the position, any man or woman who serves in this capacity must do so in a way that is beyond reproach. It is therefore obviously unacceptable for a County Chairman in either party to be in a position to unfairly push his own candidacy for Sheriff or Clerk.

This proposed legislation is neither overreaching nor is it burdensome. A Sheriff or Clerk is still able to run and serve on County Committee, serve as Municipal Chair, chair a Legislative District Committee and even serve on the County Party Executive Committee in major roles (i.e. Treasurer). The ONLY restriction is they cannot be the highest ranking male or female in the County Organization. This oversight is prudent, doesn’t infringe on anyone’s right to associate with a party and is objectively ethical.

In regards to the aspects of the legislation mentioned above, I 100% support it. Responsible Republicans would be wise to do so as well if they genuinely value the integrity of our systems and want to prove themselves to the 80% of residents who currently feel they are in some way corrupt.

HOW NJ DEMOCRATS ARE WRONG:

As well meaning as parts of this legislation may be, one particular aspect undermines its validity and renders it unacceptable. The aspect I’m referring to requires that any current County Chairman, Co-Chairman or Vice Chairman, who also serves as Sheriff, Clerk or Surrogate, must resign as Party Head within 120 days after this bill becomes law.

In the entire state, only one County Chairman would be affected by this legislation. Shaun Golden is currently the Monmouth County GOP Chairman as well as Monmouth County Sheriff. His Democrat political rival in Monmouth County is Democrat Senator Vin Gopal. And it just so happens to be Senator Gopal who introduced this legislation. Senator Gopal is clearly trying to mask a backdoor attempt to punish a political rival as to what would otherwise appear to be genuine legislation.

Proof that this is a partisan hit job can also be seen in the fact that this legislation fails to follow accepted protocol that NJ voters are used to when these sorts of systemic changes occur. For example, it used to be legal in NJ for someone to “double-dip” and serve as both Mayor and Senator at the same time. This changed in 2007 when legislation was signed into law by then Governor Corzine restricting that practice. Instead of punishing the officials who were serving in dual roles at the time the legislation was passed, the Democrats chose to grandfather in everyone currently in that position (ex. Senator/Mayor Brian Stack) while banning it from occurring with anyone else in the future. Whether you agreed with the legislation or not, it was no doubt fair to anyone serving that could have been affected by it.

The fact that Senator Gopal would intentionally choose not to grandfather the one man affected (Shaun Golden), who is also his political rival is the smoking gun proving that this legislation is rotten at it’s core. Additionally, the identical sister legislation in the Assembly (A5429) was introduced and sponsored by Raj Mukherji. It should be noted that Assemblyman Mukherji district running mate and Senator is none other than Brian Stack. This is the same Brian Stack who Democrats chose to grandfather in so that he could serve two positions at the exact same time. If grandfathering Senator/Mayor Stack was and still is the right call from the Democrats perspective, how could Senator Stacks district Assemblyman Raj Mukherji sponsor a bill calling for the exact opposite treatment for a Republican? The answer is because that part of the legislation is a clear partisan hit job. The Democrats need to be called on it and it must be removed from the final legislation.

WHAT MUST REPUBLICANS DO TO FIX THIS MESS?

To resolve this situation, the first order of business is for NJ Republicans to step back and recognize a few glaring truths.

1. Winning is not about halting this legislation on behalf of Sheriff/Chairman Golden. Hundreds of thousands of registered NJ Republican voters live in Democrat controlled counties. For these Republicans, the thought of their County Democrat Chair also serving in the capacity of County Clerk or Sheriff is a nightmare scenario. These Republicans overwhelmingly want this possibility eliminated and will therefore support S3838.

2. 80% of NJ voters believe that their state representatives are corrupt and they want their elected officials to prove them wrong via ethical actions and solutions.

If Republicans have any hope of winning this issue on behalf of the people and for themselves, they need to take the two truths mentioned above seriously. That means accepting the merit of this legislation and at the same time calling the Democrats bluff.

Republicans must offer a modified bill to the Democrats that keeps all the understandable restrictions in place, but eliminates the 120 day resignation rule and instead formally grandfathers anyone affected just as Democrats did with Senator/Mayor Stack.

This is quite literally the only way to win!

To prove my point, let’s analyze the four outcomes possible for this legislation and see which scenarios end up in a GOP win.

Scenario #1

• GOP opposes this legislation.

• Democrats cave and withdraw it

Result: NJ GOP LOSS

Reasons:

• New Jersey Republicans will have proven that they are ok with the potential for corruption by not working with Democrats to close this obvious loophole.

• Republicans will also leave hundreds of thousands of registered Republicans in Democrat controlled counties open to corruption within the Courts and their elections when they could have easily stepped up and stopped it.

• Last but not least, the Republicans will also have the appearance of a party who puts the interest of one County Chairman over the people.

• Despite the shallow appearance of a win, this scenario is definitely a loss for NJ Republicans.

Scenario #2

• GOP opposes legislation.

• Democrats stay strong and pass it.

Result: EVEN BIGGER GOP LOSS

Reasons:

• NJ Republicans appear to support potential corruption.

• Democrats come out with moral highground on corruption and election integrity.

• Sheriff Golden forced to resign as Monmouth GOP Chairman.

• Definitely another loss for the Republicans.

As you can see, both scenarios where the GOP opposes the sensible aspects of this legislation ultimately result in a GOP loss.

Now let’s go over the two possible outcomes if the Republicans choose to take my advice and embrace the good parts of this legislation while modifying it to grandfather in any individual affected by it.

Scenario #3

• Republicans EMBRACE this legislation with the slight change allowing Sheriff Golden to be grandfathered in.

• Democrats drop legislation.

Result: BIG REPUBLICAN WIN

Reasons:

• GOP regains moral highground and takes lead on corruption and election integrity.

• Gopal, Mukherji and the Democrats are exposed for their manipulation and unwillingness to work across the aisle.

• Republicans in Democrat controlled counties will feel good knowing their leaders tried their best to protect their interests.

• Chairman/Sheriff Golden is still protected.

• Definitely a win for NJ Republicans.

Scenario #4

• Republicans EMBRACE this legislation with the slight change allowing Sheriff Golden to be grandfathered in.

• Democrats reluctantly agree and are forced to pass bipartisan legislation.

Result: BIGGEST GOP WIN

Reasons:

• GOP leaders demonstrate ethics and their dedication to preventing corruption.

• Both sides get credit for working together on behalf of the people.

• Chairman/Sheriff Golden is grandfathered in.

• Hundreds of thousands of NJ Republicans are thrilled that their legislators stepped up and protected them from future Democrat corruption at the county level.

When all is said and done, public officials need to remember that solely protecting Chairman Golden isn’t in itself a win. Loyalty is obviously important and should be considered, but never over the interest of the Republican electorate. When it comes to this bill, winning is easy. All it takes is understanding what voters want, demanding ethical behavior, protecting GOP voters in Democrat run counties and having the tenacity to force Democrats to work across the aisle or expose themselves as the party of corruption.

To accomplish this, we must embrace the legislation with grandfathering replacing resignation and publicly offer it to the Democrats. If all we do is that, the Democrats will be checkmated and winning will not just be easy, but also guaranteed.

The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself. – Sun Tzu

~ Jon Kurpis

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