PRESS RELEASE

DeFusco Calls on Opponent to Take Voluntary Leave From City Hall Job Until After Election

HOBOKEN, N.J. — Councilman Mike DeFusco is calling on First Ward Council candidate Migdalia Pagan-Milano to take an immediate unpaid leave of absence from her City Hall position to protect the integrity of the November 5 municipal election. As a political aide to Mayor Ravi Bhalla working in his Office of Constituent Affairs, this is an unprecedented situation where Pagan-Milano has direct access to government resources and sensitive voter information. Councilman DeFusco believes Pagan-Milano must voluntarily remove herself from her position for the duration of the election to eliminate all conflicts of interest and ensure taxpayer funded resources will not be used for political purposes.

“Everyone has the right to run for political office, but running a candidate who simultaneously collects a City Hall paycheck and reports directly to the mayor is a clear lapse of ethical judgement and poses a huge conflict of interest,” said Councilman DeFusco. “It is unfathomable that Mayor Bhalla would take a page out of Hudson County’s troubled past by supporting a candidate who is willing to push his political agenda rather than serve as an independent leader who will do what is best for Hoboken. The First Ward deserves a clean, fair election based only on the merits of the candidates’ ideas, experience and vision, and as long as my opponent is an active city employee I am concerned that this will not be possible.”

Councilman DeFusco recently sponsored a sweeping ethics reform plan to prevent city resources from being misused for political purposes, and he has been a consistent voice against insider politics and the local political establishment.

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