By Charles Layton
A large contingent of Ocean Grovers turned up at the meeting of the Neptune Democratic Club on Tuesday night to show support for Committeewoman Mary Beth Jahn.
Not only were they not allowed to speak in support of Jahn, they were told by the club’s president that they were not welcome.
Club President Linda Johnson opened the meeting by announcing that she would only allow a limited set of issues to be discussed. “If anyone is here for any other issue,” she said, “we do not deal with that issue, so if that is what you came for you can leave.” She went on to say that if anyone stepped out of line “there is a sergeant of arms and he will show you to the door.”
That was Johnson’s opening statement. Her closing statement was: “I think if you are not a dues-paying member and a Democrat you do not belong in this room.”
These remarks were entirely unprovoked. The crowd of Ocean Grovers, most of whom had never attended the club’s meetings before, could not have been more well-behaved throughout the evening. They politely applauded some of the speakers, who included members of the Township Committee.
The turnout, at the VFW post on Corlies Avenue, was much larger than is usual at meetings of the Democratic Club — something in the neighborhood of 70 people. Roughly half of that number were from Ocean Grove, and the great majority appeared to be Democratic voters.
“I was appalled,” said Joan Cruz of Ocean Grove. “I’m a lifelong Democrat. I really wanted to join this club and do some good here. I’ve never felt so unwelcome.”
After the meeting was adjourned, many others from Ocean Grove also remarked on the hostile reception. “Our voices were squashed,” Joy Norton said. Barbara Burns called the meeting “distinctly undemocratic.”
The issue that brought out these Ocean Grovers was the recent decision of the Neptune Democrats’ district leaders to replace Jahn with Nicholas Williams on the June 5 primary ballot.
Although a majority of those party functionaries had voted on March 24 to endorse Williams rather than the incumbent Jahn, their decision could be overturned by the County Democratic Party and its chairman, Victor Scudiery. And in fact, Scudiery has already let it be known that he intends to do just that. The Neptune democratic organization has been gathering names on a petition and lobbying in other ways, hoping to change Scudiery’s mind, but at this point Jahn’s supporters seem confident that Jahn rather than Williams will end up as the party’s chosen candidate.
James Mowczan, chairman of the Neptune party, said on Tuesday night that the issue will be decided for certain on Thursday. That, he said, is when Scudiery must turn in the official list of the party’s endorsed candidates to the County Clerk of Elections.
Joan Cruz said that she and her husband have just recently made Ocean Grove their primary residence and registered to vote here. She said that at the start of Tuesday night’s meeting she paid the $10 membership fee to join the Democratic Club, as many of the other newcomers did. But after the cold words she heard from the club’s president, she went to Mowczan after the meeting, withdrew her membership and got her $10 back.
“I intend to call the county Democratic Party tomorrow and complain,” she said.
The Neptune Democrats have never given any public reason for their decision to reject Jahn as their candidate. Jahn has said the problem is her refusal to go along with certain job appointments. In particular, she has said, Mowczan has pushed for the Township Committee to appoint former mayor James Manning to the position of township business administrator. Jahn has maintained that Manning is not qualified for that job.
Since it became known that the local Democrats were trying to oust Jahn from the Township Committee, Ocean Grovers have been especially vocal in supporting her. This is partly because Jahn is very well known in Ocean Grove but also because the intra-party dispute has hardly been publicized anywhere except in the Grove. Area media have pretty much ignored the story. However, that could change. A reporter from The Coaster was present at the Tuesday night meeting.
NOTE: For background on the Jahn-Williams dispute, go here. To read an editorial on the issue, go here.
Janet and Charles. I did call the Monmouth County Democratic Club this morning and left a voice mail. I got a call back from Meredith and I related my personal experiences with last night’s meeting. Since I was not “allowed” to express my thoughts after Ms. Johnson spoke last night, I decided to make
this call to the county club. I was heard and felt satisfied after speaking with Meredith who indicated she is available to speak to anyone with any concerns, thoughts, whatever. I also told her that last night’s experience would not keep me from attending future Neptune Township Democratic Club meetings and would hope to become involved in the democratic process.
BTW- Isn’t there a law against bullying!!!
Charles, thanks for the phone number. I’ll be adding my call tomorrow (Thursday).
This blog is AWESOME!
Janet — I’ve been told that a number of people have called the county party office today (Wednesday) to complain about the treatment they received at the Neptune meeting, and that these callers received a friendly, sympathetic response. One of those who called told me that the party folks there had been reading this website and were well aware of the issue. The number these people are calling to register their complaints is 732-739-8888.
Last night’s Neptune Democratic party club meeting was my first exposure to the club’s leadership, as it probably was for many other Grovers. Talk about first (bad!) impressions!
A question to those in the know: Does the Monmouth County Democratic organization even care what goes on in Neptune as long as the town gets the Democratic votes? The Blogfinger report posts that Joan was going to contact the county Dems. Just curious–any satisfaction with this?
Ogrover – Ask Randy Bishop about the time he won by 14 votes.
That was the first election a good bit of the Grove came out and voted Democrat.
Charles, you’ve sort of made my point I think. Ms. Johnson simply did the math. Even if all of Ocean Grove’s registered Republicans with some crossover Democrats voted for one opposition party candidate, I don’t believe it really would effect the eventual outcome of a Township-wide election. I really hate being a cynic!
Ogrover – it has less to do with geography and more to do with … hostility in general? I don’t know. I represent a heavily, heavily Democratic district in Bradley Park (which is right around the 33-35 crossroads – come check us out, we have some Victorians and a ton of kit homes, the neighborhood is contemporaneous to the Grove) and I’m treated the same way. It’s not about the fact that people live in Ocean Grove. It’s about the fact that people have the nerve, the sheer audacity to question her leadership and her right to tell you who to vote for. (Which is kinda odd, when you think about it, if she wants you to vote for her candidate, why wouldn’t she welcome newcomers to the fold with open arms? Why the nastiness?)
Ocean Grove is an interesting study in voting dynamics due to the fact that a lot of people are registered to vote at their primary residences. The perception is that the year-round residents are largely Republican. While this might have been true 15 years ago, the voting dynamics of the Grove have seen a change of late and largely dependent on who is running. Of the three voting districts that make up the Grove, it’s not uncommon to have close races in all three, with one party winning one district, another party winning a second, and the third splitting down the middle when the candidate is well known in Ocean Grove. There is also the fact that Ocean Grove residents are a unique sort of voter who will vote against their own party if they think the other party is running a better candidate.
I think that’s one of the more interesting aspects of all of this, the cynicism of the Democratic club thinking go home and cry, and that we as voters were going to allow an inferior candidate to run in her stead.
A few facts about the OG voter base, for whatever light they may shed:
At the time of last fall’s election, Neptune Township as a whole had 18,084 registered voters. Ocean Grove accounted for 1,696 of those registered voters, which is a little more than 9%.
In the race for Township Committee, the Republican candidate (Richard Silva) pulled 356 votes from Ocean Grove while the Democrat (Kevin McMillan) got 292 from Ocean Grove. That was an off-year election – no presidential race, U.S. Senate race etc. — so turnout was not that heavy. But these figures show that although Ocean Grove votes Republican, the Dems are a sizable minority here. You wouldn’t think the Neptune party leaders would want to insult and alienate those Democrats, would you? Or would you?
Is anyone really surprised by the attitude of Ms. Johnson toward such a significant part of the Township’s tax base? It seems to make no sense unless you consider the fact that Ocean Grove is such a small percentage of the voter base. What sort of political clout can Ocean Grove have if its views and opinions are dismissed so openly?
Michael, if you really feel strongly about not going, might I suggest you check out the Monmouth County Democrats? They are a much more welcoming crowd and always looking for volunteers. My first experiences in NJ politics was with the County party (as opposed to the local one) and I found it to be a positive and informative experience. And then I got involved in Neptune politics …
While the behavior of Ms. Johnson was completely deplorable and totally exclusionary at last night’s meeting, which is the main reason I choose not to be a member of the NDC at this time, I still intend to go to meetings to support Mary Beth and Randy and I encourage all of you to do the same. Ms. Johnson was very definitive in stating that non-dues paying members were not welcome. I know this is not true. Mary Beth’s comments that it would have been a “bloodbath” had we all not been present is important to note, and it’s clear that our presence is needed at future meetings, and hopefully through that we can change the tone and behavior and direction of the Neptune Democrats. I intend to be at the next and future meetings and hope many of those there last night will do the same. We need to make sure the Democratic Party continues to be a party of “inclusion.”
Michael Grover: Please don’t play into the “you don’t belong” mindset. Because the Democratic Party leadership doesn’t want us there is all the more reason Ocean Grovers should attend these meetings! And even though the we Grovers were silenced, our presence sent a message that Grovers stand up for what we believe in. As the saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words.”
I especially liked how Grovers were seated around the room, instead of clustering at one end. To me, that was another powerful statement.
Mary Beth, you took the words out of my mouth. I too thought the Democrat party was the “party of inclusion.” Guess not.
President Johnson was obnoxious last night. If she were a little smarter, she might have seen all of the Ocean Grovers as a potential source of new members and been more welcoming. Obviously she felt threatened by the show of support. I’m a Democrat, and after last night’s display I will never go to another meeting in Neptune. Any volunteering during the presidential election will be done elsewhere.
Hi Charles, Paul, and Fellow Blogfinger Readers –
I want to thank everyone who came out to the Democratic Club meeting this evening at the VFW. I am ashamed for my local party and Democratic club that you were treated so poorly by the Club president. The Club President’s behavior toward tonight’s attendees was inexcusable, especially as the Democratic party has traditionally been the party of inclusion. The fact that everyone who attended to support Randy and me stayed for the whole meeting, even as they were being told to “get out,” was a very powerful display of loyalty and support. If you had not been there, that meeting would have turned into an absolute bloodbath. Tonight, you made it clear that the true power in Neptune lies with the people, and that was a very uncomfortable reminder for some individuals who hold leadership positions within the Democratic Club. Being a past president of the Club, and knowing several other past presidents, this behavior is not normal.
I just wanted to express again my thanks and gratitude for your support, and I hope to have the honor of serving you as Township Committeewoman for another term.
I’d like to say thanks to everyone who came out tonight, despite the cold reception. I’d also like to echo Randy Bishop’s comments and Invite you back! As a Dictrict Leader/County Committee member, I can’t condone turning away Democrats or Independants. That’s not how I roll, and am appalled at your reception tonight. I also invite any Republicans to come too. Maybe we’ll get you to come to our side yet. (Sadly, I should mention that my attendance is spotty at best, as I’m usually at HPC making your lives hell over siding and porches.)