Murphy goes all in for Sires in West New York, reiterates pledge to build a new school

Hundreds of West New York residents stood under a tent in the rain to hear Gov. Phil Murphy pledge to spend $65 million to build a new school for the town and strongly endorse Albio Sires, a former nine-term congressman, for mayor in the May 9 municipal election.

“He’s as good as it gets.  You can trust him with your life.  He’ll take this community to new heights,” Murphy said.

Murphy made it clear that the state has set aside $65 million “for one single purpose, and that is to build a school on Broadway.”

“You got that?  Remember one thing one anyone says something otherwise, tell  them Murphy said the following: it’s my money, and  that’s how it’s going to be spent.”

Saying he’s known Sires for more than 20 years, Murphy told voters, “experience matters.”

“This is no time in this world the way it is — with this economy, with inflation, with our recovery from the pandemic – this is no time to give this community to an untested leader or untested leadership.,” Murphy declared.  “You need the steely veteran presence that Albio Sires and this whole lineup bring to West New York.”

Union City Mayor and State Sen. Brian P. Stack promised he’d be in West New York every day until Election Day to ensure a victory for Sires and his slate of town commissioner candidates.

“Never, never, did Albio in his time as a mayor and his time as an assemblyman, his time as the speaker, his time as a congressman use West New York for political gain. It was always about the residents,” said Stack.  “It proves that who else would leave Congress, come back and say, ‘I want to serve my hometown again, as I did before.’”

Democratic State Chairman LeRoy Jones, who served in the legislature with Sires in the 1990s, predicted a big win for the former Speaker.

“I am here this morning not against anyone else but pro and for Team Albio,” Jones said.  “He has distinguished himself as a sold citizen here from a young man, and when he entered this world of politics, as an assemblyman, as a mayor, and a career as a United States congressman, one of the things that stands out to me with all those titles, the most important title that he has been to me is simply friend.”

Sires served as mayor for eleven years before winning election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2006.  He declined to run for re-election last year and instead returns to his hometown with the hope of serving another term as mayor.

“I came here when I was eleven-years-old,” said Sires, pointing to his family’s emigration from Cuba.  “I love this town.  I am one of you.”