LETTER FROM MORRIS COUNTY DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE CHAIRWOMAN AMALIA DUARTE

This week I announced that after serving as the Morris County Democratic Committee (MCDC) Chairwoman for two terms, I have decided not to seek a third term at the county convention on June 29.

It has been a privilege to serve as the first woman and Latina MCDC Chair. I am proud of the work we have accomplished!

Now, I want to focus on an area that's critical right now: grassroots engagement. So, I will move into serving as an appointed Executive Board member, focused on grassroots organizing and continuing to manage MCDC’s social media.

I am excited to pass the baton to MCDC Secretary Darcy Draeger. The full elected Executive Board will consist of Draeger; Mike DeLamater (vice chair); Paul DeNoon (treasurer); Parsippany Municipal Chair Matt Clarkin (operations officer); and Mountain Lakes Municipal Chair Margaret Capodanno (secretary).

Darcy and I both got involved in Democratic Party politics after the 2016 election. We helped establish Municipal Committees in our neighboring towns of Mendham Township and Chester Township. We both ran for local office the following year, and she bravely ran for State Assembly in 2019 and 2020.

We have worked together for the past three years on our Executive Board. Darcy is smart, analytical and has a terrific grasp of Morris County and state politics. I know she will be terrific in her new role as Chair and lead us to even greater success.

With Trump back in office, there's a lot of energy at the grassroots level of the Democratic Party. I am excited to start this new role, helping engage volunteers and collaborating with other organizations. It’s critical that we organize efforts to fight back against his outrageous and illegal policies

This past Saturday, more than 4,000 people gathered at the Morristown Town Hall for a “No Kings” rally! It was co-sponsored by MCDC, with 11th for Change; NJ Citizen Action; and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey. I had the honor of leading the event as emcee and welcoming special guests, including Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rep. Mikie Sherrill; and former Congressman Tom Malinowski, along with a surprise guest, former Gov. Christie Todd Whitman, now in the Forward Party.

In CD-7, I have partnered with a group of Municipal Chairs and others to coordinate rallies and visits to the District Office of Rep. Tom Kean in Bernardsville. It’s a weekly action we named “Finding Kean Fridays” modeled after “Fridays with Frelinghuysen.” These visits led to Kean closing his office and moving to a corporate park in Lebanon; but we continue to pressure him.

We have a great opportunity this year to win races, from local to state, with Rep. Mikie Sherrill at the top of the ticket!

In last week’s Primary Election, with the hard work of many MCDC members and other volunteers, we helped land a big win for Rep. Sherrill. Morris County delivered more than 62% of the vote for her, the highest percentage for Sherill of any county in the state. In addition, Morris County saw the highest Democratic primary turnout in a gubernatorial election year in 44 years.

I am proud of other accomplishments that we have made over the past three years, in particular managing the 2024 U.S. Senate primary. I led an endorsement process rooted in democratic values. In the hotly contested race, unlike some county chairs who endorsed First Lady Tammy Murphy, I refused to make an endorsement before our convention. Instead, I launched a series of interview-style Town Halls with each candidate – Rep. Andy Kim, First Lady Tammy Murphy, and Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina. I made sure county-committee members had the opportunity to hear directly from each candidate, and to make an informed decision on whom to vote for, free from the influence of the Executive Board. This culminated with Kim overwhelmingly winning the MCDC endorsement with 85% of the online, secret ballot voting, and Murphy ending her campaign a week later.

Under my tenure, and thanks to the hard work of Municipal Chairs, candidates and campaign teams, MCDC has won at the local level and expanded Democratic control:

- All local Democratic elected officials who ran from 2022-24 were re-elected.
- Chatham Township and Morris Plains flipped from Republican to Democratic control.
- Democrats took every single seat on the Chatham Township, Morris Township, and Mountain Lakes Township committees.
- In 2022, in a historic first, Mendham Township Committeewoman Lauren Spirig became the second Democrat elected to the committee, and in January 2023, the first Democrat Deputy Mayor.
- In 2023, Chatham Borough elected its first woman Democratic Mayor, Carolyn Dempsey.

Finally, I have put in many hours of “call time;” relationship-building; and event planning to raise more than $600,000. I appreciate everyone who helped in that effort or made a donation of any amount – and the support from our union friends!

After the county reorganization meeting, Darcy plans to also appoint Boonton Councilman Ben Weisman and Randolph Municipal Committee Chair Meghan Lynch (Fundraising Co-Chairs); Capodanno (Outreach Chair); Cara Parmagiani; and Jason Navarino (Parlimentarian).

Treasurer Michael Thompson will be stepping away from MCDC. I want to thank Michael for the countless volunteer hours he has devoted to the organization and for taking on the difficult challenge of running for County Surrogate in 2019!

This new MCDC leadership team has worked together in different capacities, and we know how to bring home wins in Morris County. Onward to November!