DISTRICT 40 GOP TEAM DEMANDS CONVENTION TO CHOOSE

THE CANDIDATES  FOR THE  BERGEN COUNTY PRIMARY LINE

(Wyckoff, NJ ) The District 40 Republican legislative team of Kristin M. Corrado, Kevin  J. Rooney and Christopher DePhillips is demanding that a convention be held in the Bergen County portion of the district to  allow the party’s rank and file members to select the candidates who will get the official Bergen County Republican Organization backing in the June 6 Primary Election.

DePhillips, who is the District 40 Republican chairman in Bergen, said he is calling for a convention in mid-March to include all duly elected members of the municipal county committee in the seven Bergen municipalities in the district. The seven towns are Allendale, Franklin Lakes, Ho-Ho-Kus, Midland Park, Ridgewood, Waldwick, and  Wyckoff.

DePhillips said the county committee members should choose who gets the official BCRO line, not the  current BCRO chairman, Paul DiGaetano, who is also a candidate for state senate in District 40.

“A convention is a more democratic way to choose candidates and it follows precedent  set by the District 39 Republicans in Bergen County, who have been conducting their own conventions for years,” said DePhillips, an attorney and a Wyckoff resident.

Rooney, the former mayor of Wyckoff said it would “disrespectful”  to the county committee members to exclude them from the selection process.

“The county committee members should be part of the selection process. They are the backbone of our party, and the District 40 candidates should tell them where we stand on the issues and what we intend to do if we are elected,” said Rooney.

DePhillips says he will begin this week to send letters to the county committee members informing them of a District 40 convention.  He said the BCRO bylaws do not prohibit a district convention.

“I hope Chairman DiGaetano would support the convention, but if he does not we are prepared to move forward without him,” said DePhillips.