The Mercer GOP should look to Trenton if they want future wins
To give you some idea of how messed up the Mercer County GOP is, I’ve jokingly mentioned to a handful of top Republicans that I’m considering running for county executive. And you know what each of them have said, independent of each other? That they would back me and I should seriously consider it.
So maybe I’ll run. Who knows. I mean, if Trump can become president …
Only problem? I honestly believe if God himself came down from the heavens, and if he declared himself as a member of the Grand Old Party, he’d lose here in Mercer.
Basically, you look at elections in the past few decades, and the trend is clear: Democrats are ascendent in the county. Virtually all elections come in at 2-to-1 Democrat. Happened this year (Menendez 63 percent, Hugin 32 percent), happened in 2017 (Murphy 64 percent, Guadagno 33 percent), happened in 2016 (Clinton 66 percent, Trump 29 percent), and in the last county executive election in 2015, it happened again (Hughes 67 percent, Richford 33 percent).
The numbers are stark. Didn’t always used to be this way in the county. Trenton was reliably Democrat, Hamilton, Ewing, and Lawrence less so, and the Republicans ruled in the outer suburbs.
Those days are gone. Democrats rule everywhere in the county. There are only a handful of Republicans serving on councils or as mayor. The path to success for Republicans is … well, I don’t see one.
The problem with this should be obvious to anyone with any grasp of history: Whenever one political party rules without opposition, things go south. Complacency at best, wanton disregard for the people they’re supposed to serve at worst.
Now I’m not saying this is where we’re at, but really: We’re probably not that far off.
And honestly, I think Trenton suffers the most as a result. If Democrats countywide know they’re going to win, they need not bother with trying to make Trenton better. It’s simply not in their immediate interests. There are easier battles to fight. So…
If I were running a countywide campaign, I’d book time with every city church, with every city civic group, and ask them a simple question: Has their life improved in the near-20 years of Democratic rule in the county?
That should be the first step for the Republicans. That, and seeing if God is available.
Jeff Edelstein is a columnist for The Trentonian. He can be reached at jedelstein@trentonian. com, facebook.com/ jeffreyedelstein and @ jeffedelstein on Twitter.