(Atlantic County, NJ) — Assemblyman Vince Mazzeo (D-Atlantic) and former Atlantic County Freeholder Colin Bell (D-Atlantic) released the following statements today regarding the 2017 election in the 2nd Legislative District:

“After much thought, I have decided to forgo seeking the State Senate seat being vacated by my friend Senator Jim Whelan and instead seek re-election to the General Assembly.

With my father’s passing last week and the realization that now more than ever my duty to my family our business is growing, I need to be able to balance my responsibilities to my store and my job as Assemblyman. I know the job and the tremendous time and effort it requires, and I’m ready to continue to serve and run for re-election to the Assembly to fight for all of Atlantic County.

The support I received in just my short time as a Senate candidate was overwhelming and I’m humbled by it. But I know I can continue to do the work Atlantic County residents have entrusted in me to do as your Assemblyman — advocating for our veterans, creating jobs in both Atlantic City and Atlantic County and working tirelessly to combat the ongoing heroin and opioid epidemic in our community.

With Senator Whelan’s pending retirement and his big shoes to fill in the Statehouse, Atlantic County will be left without a representative in legislative leadership or a committee chairmanship. With my seniority in the Assembly, I feel strongly that next term I will be primed to serve as a committee chairman — putting me in an even greater position to be an effective advocate for Atlantic County’s hard-working middle-class families, seniors and small businesses.

The decision to step back from running for the Senate was not an easy one. But I’m honored to support and endorse my friend former Atlantic County Freeholder and former Prosecutor Colin Bell as our next Senator and Buena Vista Township Committeeman John Armato as my Assembly running mate. Together the Bell, Mazzeo, Armato team will be a force in Trenton to for all Atlantic County.”

“Assemblyman Mazzeo is a rare breed of public servant. I commend him and I’m incredibly humbled and appreciative of his support for me to succeed Jim Whelan as the next Senator from Atlantic County. Senator Whelan has been a political mentor to me, and he has big shoes to fill.I look forward to serving with the same honesty, integrity and passion for protecting our hardworking families that Senator Whelan demonstrated over his long and successful career in public service.

Serving Atlantic County on the Freeholder Board was one of the greatest honors of my life. As your Senator, I’ll bring the same no-nonsense attitude to Trenton to shake up the business as usual politics that’s leaving our state in a deepening economic hole. We need jobs, industries and businesses and we need to protect New Jersey’s women and students. Restoring funding for essential women’s health services and reforming predatory student loan lending practices, issues already being tackled head on by my running mate Vince Mazzeo, will be some of my top priorities.”

Colin Bell served three years as an Atlantic County Freeholder at-Large and was a candidate for Assembly in 2015. Colin is a local attorney in Atlantic City, a former Assistant Atlantic County Prosecutor and was a longtime member of the Board of Directors for the Atlantic City Boys & Girls Club. On the Freeholder Board, he was the foremost leader for openness and transparency and stood up as the only vote against rescinding the state’s toughest county pay-to-play law. As a candidate for Senate, he led and will continue to lead to the fight to attract new businesses and jobs to Atlantic County, while working to reduce the growing property tax burden on our families and businesses.

Joining Bell and Mazzeo on the ticket is lifelong Atlantic County resident, Buena Vista Township Committeeman John Armato. In his three years on Township Committee, Armato has never voted for a tax increase in the municipal budget and has been a leader in holding the line on spending to protect Buena Vista families. A former Sergeant in the United States Air Force, Armato served overseas in the 605th Tactical Control Squadron in defense of our nation.

After returning from his military service, John became a HVAC technician and a member of Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 322, working in the Atlantic City casino industry. For the past 40 years, he’s served with the Richland Volunteer Fire Company as a volunteer firefighter and he served 10 years on the Minotola Rescue Squad as an EMT. As an EMT, firefighter and certified recovery coach, John has been on the front line of the heroin and opioid epidemic plaguing our community. He sees firsthand every day and for him it’s even more personal with members of his own family battling the deadly disease of addiction.

“Combating the heroin epidemic and caring for our families shouldn’t be just rhetoric,” said Committeeman Armato. “I live it every day and I want to go to Trenton to enact policies that will truly help our families who have been hit hard with addiction and economic depression. I’m proud to be running with Assemblyman Vince Mazzeo and our next Senator Colin Bell to be an advocate for our veterans, seniors and businesses. Together, I look forward to utilizing a lifetime of experience and leadership on behalf of Atlantic County’s families.”

“I am proud to support Colin Bell for Senate and Vince Mazzeo and John Armato for State Assembly. For over 30 years I’ve served Atlantic County in public office, and I know that these three individuals will fight for Atlantic County as just hard as I have. Together they’ll be a force for forward-looking thinking for our community. We can’t afford to relive the past; Atlantic County’s future depends on leaders willing to actually work on behalf of our community instead of pandering to their every whim.”

Bell, Mazzeo and Armato will be formally seeking the endorsement of the Atlantic County Democratic Committee at their convention in Atlantic City this Sunday.