Perth Amboy Mayor Helmin Caba has won renomination for a second term as mayor, the New Jersey Globe projects, defeating two Democratic primary challengers.
As of 10:08 p.m., Caba has 48% of the vote; Joe Vas, the son of a former mayor, has 35%, while Kenneth Gonzalez, a former municipal court judge, has 17%.
Caba’s council running mates, Councilwoman Rose Morales and school board member Stacey Peralta, have also won their seven-way Democratic primary for two council seats.
Caba first got to office in 2020 by unseating Mayor Wilda Diaz. This year’s election is Perth Amboy’s first since switching from nonpartisan to partisan races, so Caba will still have to defeat Republican Sharon Hubberman in the fall in his majority-Hispanic, deeply Democratic city.