Defeated council candidate sues Roselle Democrats, Atkins

After a June primary election for a Roselle council spot was nullified after months of legal challenges, the courts let the municipal Democratic Party select the nominee: challenger Cynthia Johnson.

Incumbent Denise Wilkerson, who lost the nomination to Johnson, said the emergency meeting where Democrats picked Johnson included voters who were not eligible members. The allegations come in a lawsuit that Wilkerson has filed against the Roselle Democratic Committee, Johnson, and Assemblyman and Roselle Democratic Chair Reginald Atkins.

The court-ordered Democratic committee vote earlier this month wasn’t particularly close — Johnson won 20-7. Still, Wilkerson asked a judge to void the results of that vote because two voting members were allegedly ineligible. The lawsuit claims one person wrongfully substituted another member of the Roselle Democratic Committee, while another was invited to vote despite no longer being a Democrat.

Wilkerson accused Atkins of repeatedly violating bylaws and regulations, pointing to a 2023 do-over vote in which he won re-election to the Roselle Democratic chairmanship.


https://newjerseyglobe.com/judiciary/defeated-council-candidate-sues-roselle-democrats-atkins/