My Thoughts on Emily for Mayor

As the field of undecided voters shrinks, I’m being asked more and more to talk about “why Tiffanie and not Emily?”  

That seems to be the fence many voters are on — and I get it.

One of my favorite quotes — one you’ve probably heard me say this year — is: “Two things can be true at the same time.”  And in this case: you can vote for Tiffanie and still like Emily.

You’ve also heard me say — repeatedly — that as Mayor Bhalla leaves office, he’s leaving behind a financial, operational, and infrastructure mess. Hoboken’s future depends on our next mayor having the skills and experience to pick up the pieces and run the city so it works for everyone. 

It’s that simple. And it’s that urgent.

This week’s untimely departure of one of the most experienced professionals in City Hall is a perfect example. He was someone I often mentioned in meetings as bringing critical infrastructure management experience to Hoboken — at a time when we’ve never needed it more. His departure is a huge loss for our city, and rebuilding that expertise will be one of my first priorities.

Being Hoboken’s next mayor is a huge job, and IMHO Emily — at least right now — doesn’t have the experience to take it on in the way Hoboken needs, and deserves. Once we stabilize our city and get it back on track, maybe then. But for now, her entire perspective comes from inside the Bhalla administration.

Over the past eight years, Emily has been a loyal supporter of the mayor’s agenda — a rubber stamp on nearly every major decision, even when those decisions weakened transparency, accountability, or public trust. From the CLEAR cameras that she’s still doubling down on (for some odd reason 🙃), to countless rushed ordinances, she has followed rather than led on the issues that matter most to residents. And she continues to be funded and managed by Bhalla insiders — the same architects of the toxic politics Hoboken needs to move beyond.

One clear example: she worked to defeat the Tests & Vests ordinance that I co-authored with Paul Presinzano to address e-bike safety — the top concern we all hear from residents in every ward. Emily chose the mayor’s politics over your priorities.

Emily’s strength is constituent outreach. She answers questions on Facebook, follows up on service requests, and genuinely wants to help people day to day. Those qualities matter, and Hoboken needs them. But she believes that focusing on small, immediate issues will somehow translate into solving the city’s biggest ones. We need both — someone who can handle the small and master the big.

I’ve known Emily a long time. I first met her in 2016 when I ran voter outreach for a Board of Education slate; she told me then she was considering a BOE run before joining Ravi’s ticket in 2017. We’ve volunteered together for years — every other Friday at the Hoboken Food Pantry — and outside of politics, we talk about our families and our neighbors. Those moments remind me she cares deeply about this community, just as I do.

But if Emily becomes mayor, we’ll have someone leading our city who has:

• Never led a major infrastructure or financial initiative.

• Never managed a large organization or hired senior professionals.

• Never served on a land use board or the Hoboken Business Alliance.

• Never served on the Community Development Subcommittee or negotiated a redevelopment agreement.

• Never been willing to have an open discussion about parking — one of the top quality-of-life issues in this race.

• Never fought for a more transparent government.

This list covers the core responsibilities that fall under the jurisdiction of the Mayor — the biggest areas Hoboken is struggling with today and where experience matters most.

Yes, we’ve co-sponsored several good pieces of legislation — Skip the Stuff, Clean StrEateries, Common-Sense Cannabis — and we worked together to try to negotiate a rent control compromise before ultimately walking away when we saw the resident outrage. But the reality is this: on policy, planning, and problem-solving, I’ve often been the one drafting and building — and she’s followed along.

When I say Emily shouldn’t be mayor today, I mean exactly that — because I appreciate what she contributes to our community. And I believe that, in the right environment — one that encouraged independence and invited her into tougher conversations — she’d be better prepared to run in the future which I hope she does. But that’s not what she’s learned under this administration.

Right now, Hoboken needs a mayor who knows the job on day one — someone ready to lead, restore trust, and make City Hall work again for everyone.

This election isn’t about personalities or headlines; it’s about what Hoboken needs — a leader with the experience to reset operations, deliver a responsible, transparent budget, and get our city back on track.

When I talk to voters who are on the Tiffanie vs Emily fence, nine times out of ten they end up voting for me — because they get it. They know they can comfortably vote for me, and still support Emily — who I’m confident will continue serving Hoboken in many ways.

For anyone still on that fence — I hope this helps you see the difference.

Hoboken needs a mayor ready to lead from day one, and that’s exactly what I’ll do.