In a political twist that could only happen in New Jersey, North Bergen Mayor and former state Sen. Nick Sacco — a lifelong Democrat with decades of influence in Hudson County — has crossed party lines to endorse Republican Jack Ciattarelli for governor.
The announcement, delivered at Sacco’s annual Mayor’s Ball before a ballroom full of stunned party regulars, marks one of the most consequential defections in recent state politics.
Just two weeks ago, Sacco’s office dismissed reports of such an endorsement as “rumor.”
“Nick Sacco is a proud, lifelong Democrat, and he has absolutely no intention of supporting Jack Ciattarelli for Governor and has not had any contact with the Ciattarelli campaign,” said Sacco spokesperson Phil Swibinski, according to a political gossip blog that claimed Sacco was considering Ciattarelli.
Swibinski is a media strategist for O’Dea’s mayoral campaign.
“Bill O’Dea has been building a true grassroots campaign for more than a year, and now that hard work is paying off as he is poised to secure a place in the city’s runoff election and ultimately defeat Jim McGreevey,” said Swibinski
But on Saturday night, there he was, smiling beside Ciattarelli as cameras flashed.
“The welfare and well-being of North Bergen residents are more important than party lines,” Sacco declared, blaming years of state funding cuts for his decision. Ciattarelli, in turn, seized the moment. “I see this as a race to get New Jersey back to the New Jersey we all grew up in — and the New Jersey we all love,” he said, drawing cheers from a crowd equal parts bewildered and exhilarated.
The reaction from the Hudson County Democratic Organization was immediate and furious. In a sharply worded statement, the HCDO accused Sacco of selling out to what it called “the MAGA wing of New Jersey politics.”
“MAGA Jack Ciattarelli has been poking around Hudson County on a DINO hunt for months,” the statement read. “The fact that Donald Trump’s hand-picked candidate landed on Nick Sacco should surprise no one.”
For Hudson County, where political loyalties are traditionally as rigid as the Pulaski Skyway, the move is a full-blown earthquake. And the aftershocks are already rattling Jersey City, where County Commissioner William “Bill” O’Dea is running for mayor with Sacco’s backing.
O’Dea, long seen as a pragmatic reformer with blue-collar roots, now finds himself balancing on a political fault line. His chief rival, former Gov. Jim McGreevey, has the support of Sacco’s longtime adversary, Union City Mayor Brian Stack. Polls show McGreevey leading, fueled by strong name recognition and the backing of key county Democrats. O’Dea has countered with an aggressive campaign portraying McGreevey as a “corrupt, disgraced politician,” hoping to tap into the public’s appetite for independence.
Sacco’s endorsement, however, complicates that message. On one hand, his support gives O’Dea access to North Hudson’s formidable political machine — a network that has powered elections for generations. On the other, it risks painting O’Dea as guilty by association with a Democrat who just embraced the Republican standard-bearer.
“It’s a double-edged sword,” said one longtime Hudson County operative. “Sacco’s help can win you a ward, but his baggage can lose you a city.”
In the gritty, unpredictable theater of New Jersey politics, it’s anyone’s guess how this will play out. What’s certain is that the rules are changing — perhaps permanently. Sacco’s break from the Democratic establishment is both a sign of fatigue with the party’s leadership and a warning that the old loyalties binding Hudson County’s political order are fraying fast.
As Election Day draws near, the question is whether Bill O’Dea can ride out the political storm his ally unleashed — or whether this new chapter of Hudson County’s political folklore will end with his campaign swallowed by the fissure splitting the county’s Democratic foundation.
For now, one thing is clear: in a state where politics has always been a contact sport, Nick Sacco just threw a haymaker that no one saw coming — and everyone will be talking about for a long, long time.