These Are The Seven Candidates Running For Jersey City Mayor

Seven mayoral candidates are vying to become Jersey City’s next mayor, setting the stage for one of the city’s most competitive races in decades. Voters in the state’s second-largest city can start casting ballots on Saturday. 

The field includes former Gov. Jim McGreevey, Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea, Ward E Councilman James Solomon, Council President Joyce Watterman, attorney and former school board president Mussab Ali, educator Christina Freeman, and resident Kalki Jayne-Rose. 

Together, they represent a wide spectrum of political experience and community ties, pitching voters sharply different visions on housing, development, public safety, and economic  growth.

However, across all seven campaigns, one issue dominates: affordability. Each candidate has put forward plans to curb rising rents, strengthen tenant rights, and manage development responsibly — though their paths diverge on how to get there. 

New Jersey Urban News reached out to all the candidates with questions pertaining to their political platforms such as tackling affordable housing, transparency in government, and high energy costs. The responses from each mayoral candidate were sent by email. Jayne-Rose did not provide answers to New Jersey Urban News.

Click on each candidate’s name to jump ahead in the article:

• Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea
• Former Governor Jim McGreevey
• Former Jersey City School Board President Mussab Ali
• Jersey City Council President Joyce Watterman
• Jersey City Police Officer Christina Freeman
• Ward E Councilman James Solomon

Bill O’Dea: Fiscal Discipline and Real-Time Solutions

Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea is running a grassroots campaign built on immediate action, he stated to New Jersey Urban News. He landed his first job in local politics in 1985 being the youngest elected official in the city’s history at the age of 26. 

He later on was elected to the Hudson County Board of Commissioners, for more than two decades, with a track record of winning his last three elections unopposed, he added.

O’Dea’s top priority is addressing what he called a “structural deficit” of roughly $100 million, in fiscal misappropriations and reliance on one-time revenues to cover municipal budget gaps. “Opening up the budget process to the public and creating a real citizens budget committee tasked to look not at one year, but putting together a 4 year plan to address the deficit, is key,” he stated. 

The City Council voted 6-2 to adopt the $750.09 million budget, which took on an added 0.97% hike in property taxes earlier this year. The municipal council approved a $734.11 million budget last year, with a tied 1.93% additional tax hike, according to the city’s budget report.

He also pledged on reducing his salary by 20% and implementing a “Citizen’s Budget Committee,” which he added, would draw in long term solutions such as the city’s economic mobility. “We are about showing what we have already done as a prelude to our plan for the 4 years.”

Jim McGreevey: Transparency and Balanced Growth 

Mayoral candidate Jim McGreevey was the former Democratic governor of New Jersey, who resigned 21 years ago. He was the mayor of Woodbridge from 1991 to 2002, while also holding seats in both state Assembly and Senate. 

His tenure ended abruptly in 2004 after revelations of an extramarital affair with Goldan Cipel, whom McGreevey had appointed as a homeland security adviser, despite Cipel’s lack of federal clearance. He admitted to coming out as a “gay American” in 2004, as a result of Cipel threatening to file a lawsuit to McGreevey for sexual harassment.

“City government must be rooted in listening, transparency and cooperation. I have spent my career working in public service,” he told New Jersey Urban News. After leaving office, McGreevey has dedicated himself to reentry and rehabilitation work. 

He currently serves as the executive director of the New Jersey Reentry Corporation, a nonprofit organization aiding formerly incarcerated individuals building a life outside of prison.

“I am reminded every day that our city’s greatest strength lies in its people.” He has claimed his administration would focus on what he called “responsible development” with built-in affordability requirements, adding workforce and senior housing. 

Bringing on energy costs, McGreevey criticized the “unchecked expansion” of A.I. data centers, vowing to require impact reviews and corporate accountability.

Mussab Ali: Progressive Reform and Activist Voice 

Former school board president Mussab Ali is positioning himself as a champion of the working class, with an agenda focused on affordability, transportation, and green energy policies. He is a son of Pakistani immigrants and a stage 4 cancer survivor, Ali made political history in 2017, when he became the youngest official ever to hold public office in the city at the age of 20.

“As Mayor, I would push for a green initiative for more of us joining programs like Community Solar,” adding that it could reduce energy costs by 30%. “This is a campaign that is committed to fighting for the working class and presenting ideas that establish a bold vision.” During his five-year tenure, back in 2022, Ali served as the Jersey City board president, who passed the city’s first fully funded school budget in more than a decade.

Ali told New Jersey Urban News he wants to propose a city-run, free bus line and to take on “bad landlords” by enforcing existing rent control laws — a measure he says could have saved renters an estimated $51 million annually if properly implemented. 

He also wants to eliminate forced broker fees and launch an online database of rent-controlled properties. “We understand the rising cost of living here, the transportation deserts that exist, and that for far too long shady actors have got away with too much.”

Joyce Watterman: Taking On The Political Ranks 

City Council President Joyce Watterman is running on her record, pointing to her role in advancing affordable housing and women’s rights. “I am not running on what I hope to do — I am running on what I have already delivered,” Watterman said to New Jersey Urban News.

Her campaign centers on strengthening rent control protections, encouraging mixed-income development, and ensuring that A.I. data centers contribute to local grid upgrades rather than driving up household costs. Waterman added, strengthening rent control protections “to prevent extreme annual increases and close loopholes that allow sudden spikes.”

She also wants to expand energy-efficiency programs and weatherization assistance to reduce residents’ monthly bills—as the average residential customer in New Jersey had their monthly peak approximately 17% to 20%, according to a utilities report.

“Growth must benefit everyone,” Watterman said. “We can’t allow longtime residents to be priced out of the city they built.” She is the first African American woman ever to be elected as Council President in Jersey City taking on the mantle of the position in 2011. “Jersey City has changed dramatically over the past few decades–and while growth can bring opportunity, it has also left too many of our longtime residents struggling to keep a roof over their heads.”

She launched the city’s first Women’s Advisory Board in 2022, bracing on efforts for environmental justice, safe neighborhoods, and accountability in government. 

Christina Freeman: Ground-Level Leadership

As a police officer and lifelong Jersey City resident Christina Freeman says her campaign is grounded in lived experience, not politics. “I’m not a career politician — I’m a mother and a public servant who sees this city up close every day,” Freeman said to New Jersey Urban News. She was born in Greenville, Jersey City.

Freeman’s housing plan targets loopholes that allow landlords to sidestep rent control, promising to strengthen enforcement, expand staffing, and educate tenants about their rights. She also plans to create the Freeman Legacy Housing Program to promote homeownership among long-term residents and working families. 

“Meanwhile, the cost of living has skyrocketed, leaving many residents burdened,” she stated.

Her broader platform includes supporting youth programs, environmental initiatives like composting and trash reform, and job creation. On the energy front, Freeman says she’ll require data centers and large energy users to offset their local impact and invest in renewable energy projects. “I will require data centers and other large-scale energy users to contribute to local grid improvements and offset costs for the community.”

James Solomon: A Progressive Campaign Against Developers 

Councilmember James Solomon distinguishes himself as the only candidate rejecting developer donations — a stance that underpins his message of independence from what he calls “self-serving insiders.”

Solomon, a cancer survivor and father, says the next mayor must “stand up to powerful developers and rebuild a city that works for everyone.” His comprehensive housing plan includes mandatory 20% affordable units in all new projects, strict rent control enforcement, penalties for negligent landlords, and bans on junk fees and rent-fixing algorithms.

 “I’m from New Jersey but not Jersey City, my family a long time ago was in Hudson County, Kearney in that area,” according to a response on a site questionnaire. 

He ascended to his political seat as Ward E Councilman in 2017.

Solomon is also pledging to stabilize property taxes, strengthen tenant protections, and make homeownership more accessible through zero-interest loans and workforce housing. On utilities, he has taken the strongest stance against A.I. data centers, vowing to block their operation in Jersey City altogether. “It’s disgusting that greedy tech companies would use up our electricity and then force us to pay for it,” Solomon said. “That ends under my administration.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated to reflect the correct number of mayoral candidates in Jersey City and the correct spelling of McGreevey’s name.