What’s this — an actual election in Camden?

For years, the city’s politics have been so under the control of the Democratic machine that primary contests have basically been an afterthought. A mayor announces retirement and a party-backed candidate coasts to victory in the primary.

This year is shaping up to be a little different. Mayor Frank Moran’s surprise retirement was rolled out with the usual discipline. There was barely any time between his announcement last month and the anointing of a machine-backed successor, Councilmember Vic Carstarphen.

But five candidates filed nomination petitions by Monday’s deadline, according to WHYY’s April Saul and Joe Hernandez, who also reports Moran was forced out for “lack of enthusiasm” on things like turning over city functions to Camden County. They include Elton Custis, a substance abuse counselor who has the backing of progressives that have been increasingly aggressive in taking on the machine. It also includes Councilmember Felisha Reyes-Morton, who had been a defender of the George Norcross-backed machine two years ago as a Phil Murphy-appointed commission probed tax incentives. (Did it have anything to do with this incident? I don’t know.)

It’s hard to imagine that the machine-backed Carstarphen could actually lose. If it looks like he’s in any trouble, Team Norcross has essentially infinite resources to help him. But the fact that there’s something actually resembling an election for mayor in Camden seems pretty notable.

WHERE’S MURPHY — In Long Branch for an arts aide bill signing at 9:30 a.m.

CORONAVIRUS TRACKER — 3,578 newly-reported positive PCR tests for a total of 824,179. 45 more deaths for a total of 22,176 (and 2,573 probable deaths). 2,375 hospitalized, 455 in intensive care. 1,896,442 fully vaccinated, about 21.3 percent of the population.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Former Bergen County GOP Chairman Bob Yudin, former Assemblymember Michael Patrick Carroll, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman COS James Gee

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I need to state for the record that many districts in New Jersey are eliminating this vital position.” — New Jersey Association of School Librarians President Beth Thomas to the state Board of Education after they voted on a resolution recognizing April as “School Library Month.” (Full disclosure: My mom is a retired school librarian.)

MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBORROWING — “Murphy defends $4B borrowing, slams ‘Monday morning quarterbacking’,” by NJ Advance Media’s Samantha Marcus: “Gov. Phil Murphy pushed back Wednesday against criticism that he acted prematurely in borrowing $4 billion to plug a projected budget hole last fall, saying ‘We make the decisions at the time we make them based on the best information we have.’ …’I haven’t heard so much Monday morning quarterbacking since Howard Cosell retired,’ Murphy said. ‘With all due respect, we did what we thought we had to do and will continue to do just that every single day we come to work.’ In response to questions from reporters at his regular coronavirus briefing in Trenton, Murphy argued the pandemic and political turmoil at the time left the prospect of federal aid — and with it, New Jersey’s finances — tremendously uncertain. “I think we sold the bonds on Nov. 18 if I’m not mistaken,” he said. ‘So, what was the world like then? Donald Trump claimed that he had won the election and was going to litigate that literally and figuratively right up until Inauguration Day. We had two runoffs in Georgia that were not taking place until Jan. 5. And you had an avowed leader in the Republican caucus, Mitch McConnell, saying there was no way there would be any state and local aid.’”

THE VACCINE NEEDS AN INTRODUCTION INTO HIS BODY — Murphy, first lady to receive Covid-19 vaccine on Friday, by POLITICO’s Sam Sutton: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and first lady Tammy Murphy will receive doses of a Covid-19 vaccine at a megasite in Atlantic City on Friday, the governor announced during his regular briefing in Trenton on Wednesday. Murphy, who has toured the five other vaccine megasites that are being administered by health systems across the state, said he and the first lady booked their shots earlier this week. The Atlantic City site, which is overseen by AtlantiCare, was showing available appointments, he said, and “we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to showcase a terrific location with, as I said … plenty of vaccine eligibility.”

EDNA MAHAN — “NJ corrections dep’t settles for over $20 million with victims of Edna Mahan abuses dating back to 2014,” by Pix11’s Stephen M. Lepore: “Ahead of department Commissioner Marcus Hicks testifying before the New Jersey State Senate and Assembly Thursday, the New Jersey Department of Corrections settled 22 civil litigations against the department regarding allegations of sexual abuse and harassment at the troubled Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women that have been pending since 2017. The settlements total in over $20.8 million in damages and attorney fees. The suits include 20 individual complaints and two class action suits filed against the NJ DOC since 2014 who claim to have been direct victims of sexual abuse, harassment or retaliation. The victims were either directly impacted by sexual misconduct or who were incarcerated in the facility between 2014 and the date of court approval of the settlement, which is still pending.”

LAWRENCE OF VAINIERIA — “Murphy campaign consultant joins Huttle's 37th district effort,” by The Record’s Charles Stile: “After staying on the sidelines, Gov. Phil Murphy endorsed Assemblyman Gordon Johnson in the Democratic primary for the state Senate in Legislative District 37 in Bergen County. Still, one of Murphy's top political guns has teamed up with Johnson's opponent, Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle. Both candidates are from Englewood. Brad Lawrence, the veteran Democratic Party political consultant who guided Murphy's 2017 campaign and is part of the leadership of New Direction New Jersey, an independent group aligned with Murphy, is working as a consultant on Huttle's buck-the-establishment fight against Johnson.”

MATCHING FUNDS — Long-shot gubernatorial candidate Phil Rizzo has applied for matching funds with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission, the agency confirmed. It’s not clear how much he submitted, but candidates need to raise at least $490,000 in donations of $4,900 or less to qualify. It takes a while for ELEC to approve the funds. He submitted less than a month after declaring his gubernatorial campaign. I reported Monday that former Ocean County GOP Chair George Gilmore, freshly pardoned by Trump of his federal tax criminal convictions, was helping Rizzo raise money. If he qualifies, then Rizzo met the threshold a lot faster than Jack Ciattarelli, who kicked off his campaign in January 2020 and announced he met the threshold for matching funds in July.

— New Jersey releases school performance reports, cautions data impacted by pandemic

— “N.J. undocumented workers begin hunger strike after 13 months of no COVID relief”

— Murphy considering using federal stimulus funds to aid state’s undocumented residents

— “Where have billions in COVID aid gone, N.J. lawmakers ask as state gets more from feds”

— Kurpis, Azzariti considering legal challenge to Auth and DeFuccio’s petition signatures

— “Webber, Barranco team up in 26th District Assembly race”

— Video: “Zoning bans, just one obstacle for Black-owned cannabis businesses”

— “Most N.J. students won’t take standardized tests until fall, Murphy says”

— “COVID tests at the boardwalk? NJ assemblyman says it's a good idea”

— “Supplies of J&J COVID vaccine in NJ will plummet even as eligibility expands”

NOT COLE, MAN — “Democratic lawmakers join a lawsuit that accuses Trump and Giuliani of conspiring to incite the Jan. 6 riot,” by The New York Times’ Annie Karni: “A group of 10 Democratic members of Congress on Wednesday joined a federal lawsuit against former President Donald J. Trump and his personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani, claiming that they violated a 19th-century statute when they tried to prevent the certification of the presidential election on Jan. 6. Representatives Karen Bass of California, Steve Cohen of Tennessee, Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey, Veronica Escobar of Texas, Hank Johnson, Jr. of Georgia, Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Barbara Lee of California, Jerrold Nadler of New York, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, and Maxine Waters of California on Wednesday all joined the lawsuit that originally also named the Proud Boys, the far-right nationalist group, and the Oath Keepers militia group.”

— “N.J. man assaulted cops at Capitol, bragged about being at riot, authorities say”

— “2nd inmate at FCI Fort Dix dies from COVID-19 complications”

NEW JERSEY DRIVE — “Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes admits ‘bad’ traffic incidents, says he’s ‘fully capable’ of governing,” by The Trentonian’s Isaac Avilucea: “County Executive Brian Hughes has been involved in a third traffic incident, he revealed at Tuesday’s Mercer County Board of Commissioners meeting, saying he suffers from a pre-existing medical condition but remains ‘fully capable of doing my job.’ ‘I am willing to have my driver’s license reevaluated,’ Hughes told the commissioners. ‘Given the circumstances, I will willingly — and I think should — give up driving a county vehicle.’ Hughes, a Democrat, has been under siege the past few weeks over a number of startling revelations. He was involved in at least two encounters with cops over a three-year period in county-issued vehicles. In both cases, police said he appeared confused and in an altered mind state. One of those incidents occurred on the Pennsylvania Turnpike near Harrisburg last summer, while the other incident occurred in 2017 in Princeton. The Democratic kingmaker on Tuesday revealed he was involved in a third traffic incident, saying it occurred on Nassau Street in Princeton without providing details on the date and time.”

WARREN COUNTY — “‘Everybody knew’ Warren Co. sheriff preyed on young prisoners: A bid to end years of cases,” by LehighValleyLive’s Steve Novack: “In a move to finally end years of lawsuits, a trio of men who say a former Warren County sheriff sexually abused them as boys in county custody in the 1980s have spelled out all of the allegations of what was allegedly a dark but open secret within the county offices, joked about but largely ignored. As sheriff from 1982 to ’91, Edward Bullock controlled security at the courthouse in Belvidere and oversaw prisoner transfers. When boys and young teens needed a ride back and forth from the county juvenile detention center or youth shelter, Bullock would allegedly break protocol by volunteering to drive them — alone. He is said to have groomed his young victims with candy and backrubs in his courthouse office, and on those rides he would stop in a remote area and rape them.”

PAL PERKS — “Palisades Park asks workers to return $200K in sick pay. Some residents say it's not enough, by The Record’s Kristie Kattaafi: “The borough is seeking reimbursement of over $200,000 after a scathing comptroller's report found that officials were improperly paying employees for unused sick time. A month after the report from New Jersey's comptroller found hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars being wasted, the mayor and Borough Council made changes like amending white-collar contracts, issuing gas cards to department heads only and instituting an oversight committee. The report found that in 2018, the borough made over $109,000 in sick leave payouts to 27 employees who, under a 2010 law, should not have received them. In 2019, $95,000 was paid to 22 employees. Most payments were between $3,000 and $5,000, the report said … The newly formed Stop Corruption Association of Palisades Park is demanding more oversight and transparency. The group has gathered more than 700 signatures on a petition asking for the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and the FBI to further investigate the borough and the comptroller's findings.”

JEDISONED — “Joshi gets organization line for mayor in Edison as Middlesex Democrats distance themselves from Bhagia,” by New Jersey Globe’s David Wildstein: “An active investigation into a racist 2017 flyer has created a seismic shift in the Edison mayoral race, with Middlesex County Democrats are giving their organization line to Sam Joshi, bypassing the Democratic municipal chairman, Mahesh Bhagia. Bhagia has been accused of being one of the masterminds behind the flyer, and Attorney General Gurbir Grewal has now empaneled a grand jury and subpoenaed documents related to a municipal probe of the incident. Kevin McCabe, the county chairman, told county election officials on Wednesday that he’s putting Joshi, a 31-year-old councilman, on an organization line headed by Gov. Phil Murphy.”

— “Bhagia hits back after McCabe awards Edison line to Joshi”

MAPP QUEST — “Plainfield mayor to face 3 challengers in June Democratic primary,” by The Courier Post’s Suzanne Russell: “Mayor Adrian Mapp will face three challengers in the Democratic primary as he seeks a third term in office. Second Ward Councilman Sean McKenna, Board of Education member Richard A. Wyatt Jr. and Dr. Henrilynn Ibezim have all filed petitions to run against Mapp in the June 8 primary … Mapp kicked off his 2021 campaign last month with a virtual fundraiser featuring several of New Jersey's top Democratic leaders including Gov. Phil Murphy and U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker. If reelected Mapp pledged to work on economic growth and development and help the city recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

DEEP PUPIE — “Hoboken politico Raia to be resentenced for VBM fraud after U.S. Attorney’s Office wins appeal,” by Hudson County View’s John Heinis: “Hoboken politico Frank “Pupie” Raia will be resentenced for committing vote-by-mail fraud in connection to the 2013 municipal elections after the U.S. Attorney’s Office successfully appealed his 90-day sentence and $50,000 fine in December 2019. ‘The District Court committed multiple errors in the calculation of the Guidelines offense level that normally warrant a remand for resentencing. Yet Raia submits that any errors committed by the District Court are harmless in light of the three-month sentence imposed,’ U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third District Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith wrote yesterday. ‘In other words, the Guidelines did not inform the District Court’s sentence at all because the Court deemed them to be too punitive.’ U.S. District Court Judge William J. Martini submitted a lenient sentence at the end of 2019 due to lingering health issues, as well as roughly 140 letters submitted to the court speaking of Raia’s contributions to the community.

— “Well-known Ocean City police officer facing sexual assault charges”

— “Englewood Cliffs says official emails were deleted. Now they're suing a tech firm”

— “Northfield discusses whether to prohibit marijuana in town”

— “North Brunswick Township Council welcomes newest member”

— “Burlington County proposes $233 million budget with no tax levy increase”

— “Long Branch's lower Broadway project hit by more legal squabbling. Who's at the center of the fight?”

— “Jersey City public schools expected to reopen April 26, but could COVID variants change plans?”

— “HACA starting super PAC, backing Elvin Dominici for Jersey City council-at-large run”

THE CHRONICLES OF OMNIA — “N.J. hospital ends 6-year legal fight with Horizon in deal that could save patients money,” by NJ Advance Media’s Susan K. Livio: “Shield of New Jersey ended a six-year legal battle and reached a settlement Wednesday that will give patients who use the New Brunswick facility access to less expensive care and gives the hospital preferred status as a top-tier provider. Arguing it was wrongly excluded from what was then a new line of new discounted insurance plans called OMNIA, Saint Peter’s University Hospital filed a lawsuit in November 2015 to stop Horizon, the dominant insurance carrier in the state, from selling the policies without giving the hospital a chance to participate as a 'tier 1' provider.”

ASIAN AMERICANS — “Taking to the streets, NJ Asian activists explain the new civil rights movement,” by The Record’s Mary Chao: “More than 150 years after Asians first settled in America, Asian Americans are for the first time mobilizing en masse in a civil rights movement. The recent attacks have prompted many to speak out for the first time, shedding cultural norms. North Jersey is home to some of the largest Asian American communities in the United States. More than 40% of residents in boroughs such as Fort Lee and Leonia identify as Asian, as do nearly 60% of residents in Palisades Park. In recent weeks theytook to the streets carrying posters and signs that read ‘Stop Asian Hate’ and ‘Hate is a Virus.’ A new generation of North Jersey Asian Americans are spearheading this movement, having grown up in the Garden State feeling isolated. They have faced racism, but until now brushed it off instead of calling it out.”

THE LITTLE MASKMAID — Discarded masks litter beaches worldwide, threaten sea life, by The AP’s Wayne Parry: To the usual list of foul trash left behind or washed up on beaches around the world, add these: masks and gloves used by people to avoid the coronavirus and then discarded on the sand. In the past year, volunteers picking up trash on beaches from the Jersey Shore to California, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong have been finding discarded personal protective equipment. The latest example came Wednesday when New Jersey's Clean Ocean Action environmental group released its annual tally of trash plucked from the state's shorelines. In addition to the plastics, cigarette butts and food wrappers that sully the sand each year, the group's volunteers removed 1,113 masks and other pieces of virus-related protective gear from New Jersey beaches last fall. ‘Used correctly PPE saves lives; disposed of incorrectly it kills marine life,’ said Cindy Zipf, the group's executive director.”

— Rutgers unions ratify work-share agreement they say is among largest in higher ed

— “Toms River family ordered off Spirit Airlines flight after toddler eats without mask”

— “Perched high on towers, observers are on the lookout for wildfires in New Jersey”