Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali plans to make a public announcement in the coming days regarding his interest in the CD5 seat currently occupied by U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-5).

“Deciding this week,” he told InsiderNJ, when asked if he intends to pursue the Republican nomination.

We prodded him if he is leaning any particular way at this point.

“I’m a Republican,” he noted coyly.

Last month, Ghassali – who is Syrian-born and opposed to sanctuary cities – accepted an invitation from Gottheimer to D.C. to participate in discussions with “officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, AMTRAK, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency,” according to the New Jersey Herald.

InsiderNJ previously reported on Warren County Freeholder Jason Sarnoski’s size-up of a CD5 run, and an active consideration by former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan.