DOVER – Edward Correa wants to make a statement.

It was just a few minutes before 4 p.m. today when Correa walked into the Morris County Clerk’s Office and delivered a nominating petition for three county commission candidates.

On the surface, it’s an odd ticket for countywide offices.  All three are from Dover. They are Jessica Cruz, Otilio Cuevas and Guillermo Roman.

But you have to understand Correa’s motivation.

A few years ago, Correa was a key part of Dover First, a group that challenged and successfully ousted Democratic Mayor James Dodd. But now Correa, who is on the board of aldermen, has had a falling out with the reform group.

So much so that Chip Robinson, the county Democratic chair, just sent out a release blasting Correa.
Robinson said that among other things, Correa is responsible for “blatant mismanagement” and that the Morris Democratic organization won’t support his re-election bid this year.

So, Correa is striking back with a county commission slate that will challenge the organization-endorsed slate in the June primary. That ticket is composed of T.C. McCourt, Judy Hernandez and Alicia Sharma.

Clearly, it’s going to be pretty hard for Correa’s slate to win against the group endorsed by the county organization. But you get the impression Correa wants to annoy Robinson and the party’s endorsed candidates.

As the petitions were being processed, Correa described most of Robinson’s statement last week as “BS.”

That was succinct.