Voters will head to the polls on Tuesday, May 14th in key towns around New Jersey.

Critical races include the following:

Paterson

Incumbent Ward One Michael Jackson faces stiff competition from Fannia Santana, who has the

backing of Mayor Andre Sayegh and the Paterson Democratic Committee. Insiders see an opportunity here for the organization to flex its muscles ahead of the contentious primary for Passaic County Sheriff. But the independent Jackson is a very hard out. There are also other candidates in the race: Mohammed Hossain, Ramona Blizzard, Rodney Addison, and Mosleh Uddin.

Second Ward

Incumbent Shahin Khalique faces a challenge from Frank Filippelli and Aheya Khan.

Ward Three

Interesting. Council President Alex Mendez has twice lost mayoral elections to Sayegh, and they don’t

naturally dovetail. But it’s Paterson. One never knows. Menedez faces challenges from former Passaic County Commissioner Assad Akhter and former Councilman Bill McKoy.

Ward Four

Incumbent Ruby Cotton faces challenges from Kimmeshia Rogers-Jones and Justin Rucker.

Fifth Ward

Luis Velez, incumbent, faces challenges from Sebestian Mejia, Jeyss Abreu, and David Soo.

Sixth Ward

Incumbent Councilman Al Abdelaziz faces Abed Thabatah.

Irvington 

Highlighted by their 2022 catapulting of Renee Burgess into the 28th District Senate seat, Team Irvington Strong continues to show dominance as a political organization behind the leadership of Mayor Tony Vauss. On Saturday, the mayor and his incumbent council people presided over a packed senior event in the high school gymnasium as they look to defend their hold on City government.

North Ward

Incumbent Councilman Glen Vick faces Yasmin Jones.

East Ward

Incumbent Councilwoman October Hudley v. Yasmina King.

South Ward

Incumbent Council President Jamillah Beasley v Danouchka Desir.

West Ward

Incumbent Councilman Vern Cox is running unopposed.

Montclair

The decision by Mayor Sean Spiller not to pursue reelection sets up a showdown between Renee Baskerville and Chrissy Thomas. Montclair voters will also consider council contests.

Orange

Incumbent Mayor Dwayne Warren looks to secure another four-year term if he can get past challengers April Gaunt-Butler and Quantavia Hilbert.

Essex County voters will also go to the polls on Tuesday in Belleville and Nutley.

In addition, Monmouth County voters will consider candidates for local office in Deal, Allenhurst, and Loch Arbor.