The county executive is elected directly by the voters to a term of four years, which begins on January 1. There have been four elected and one appointed county executives since the establishment of the office in 1977, which replaced the county supervisor. Thomas A. DeGise, who took office in 2002 and was re-elected five times,[2] retired at the end of his term on December 31, 2023.[3] His chief of staff, Craig Guy, assumed the position following the 2023 general election, [4][5] in which 18% of the 403,729 registered voters in Hudson County cast ballots.[6]
History
Prior the creation of the office of executive, the Board of Chosen Freeholders chose a Director from among themselves.[7]
There have been four elected and one appointed county executives since the establishment of the office in 1977, which replaced the county supervisor.
County executives
1975–1987
Edward F. Clark Jr. (born
Bayonne - d. December 3, 2011
Monmouth Beach) was elected after the form of county government was changed, becoming the county's first county executive in 1977.[11]
Clark served as Hudson County Freeholder from 1962 to 1970. He was director of the board from 1970 to 1972 and county supervisor from 1972 to 1975.[12] After 12 years in the post, he was defeated in a Democratic primary for the office in 1987.[13]
1988–2001
Robert C. Janiszewski (b. September 18, 1945 in
Jersey City) was elected County Executive in 1987 after having won the Democratic primary against incumbent Edward F. Clark Jr.[13]
On September 6, 2001, Janiszewski resigned from his position as county executive due to corruption charges. He would later be sentenced to 41 months in prison for tax evasion and accepting more than $100,000 in bribes.[17]
2001–2002 (interim)
Bernard M. Hartnett Jr., is a lawyer and former executive at
New Jersey Bell.[18] He was the former Hudson County Democratic chairman when appointed by county Democratic leaders as interim county executive on October 14, 2001, after the resignation of Janiszewski.[19][20]
Hartnett was a pro-reform candidate.[21] He had been considered for as an interim
Mayor of Jersey City after the seat became vacant February 7, 1992, when
Gerald McCann was removed from office after his conviction on fraud charges.[22][23]
DeGise entered public life as a community leader during the 1980s, founding the New #28 School Neighborhood Association and eventually chairing the Heights Coalition of Neighborhood Associations (HCNA) in the
Heights section of Jersey City.[25]
DeGise was Jersey City's longest serving Municipal Council President, holding that office from 1993 to 2001. In 2001, DeGise ran for
Mayor of Jersey City in an election won by
Glenn Cunningham.[26][27]
Following the resignation of Janiszewski in September 2001, DeGise took office as county executive after winning a special election in November 2002 with 77 percent of the vote. On his first day in office, he submitted legislation to the Board of Chosen Freeholders to create the first ever Ethics Oversight Board for the Hudson County government. He was re-elected in 2003,[28] 2007[29] and 2011[30] 2015. DeGise served as the Chairman of the
North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority for a two-year term that ended in January 2016.[25]
He sought re-election in 2019[31][32] and won with 83% of the vote.[33][2] for a term which ended December 31, 2023,[34] after which he to retired.[3]
2024-present
As of 2024[update], Hudson County's Executive is Craig Guy (
D, Jersey City), whose term of office expires December 31, 2027.[35] Guy won the June 2023 primary with about 75% of the vote and was unopposed in the November general election.[36]
^"Graig Guy Sworn in as Fifth Hudson County Executive", Jersey City Times, January 5, 2024. Accessed January 26, 2024. "Joined by a who’s who of New Jersey Democratic politicians, Craig Guy was sworn in last night as Hudson County’s fifth County Executive. Guy succeeds Tom DeGise, who held the post since 2002."
^Robert D. PRUNETTI, County Executive of Mercer County, Plaintiff, v. Mercer County Board Of Chosen Freeholders, Defendant (Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division November 13, 2001) ("In 1972, the Legislature adopted the Optional County Charter Law, providing a county the opportunity to reorganize its form of government into one of four alternative forms: (i) the County Executive Plan; (ii) the County Manager Plan; (iii) the Board President Plan; or (iv) the County Supervisor Plan. See N.J.S.A. 40:41A-1 et seq. Six counties have elected to reorganize their governmental structure pursuant to the Optional Charter Act. They are respectively: Atlantic, Bergen, Hudson, Essex, Mercer and Union Counties. Five of these counties...have opted for the County Executive Plan."),
Text.
^Rinde, Meir.
"Explainer: What’s a Freeholder? NJ’s Unusual County Government System", NJ Spotlight, October 27, 2015. Accessed October 26, 2017. "Five counties -- Atlantic, Bergen, Essex, Hudson, and Mercer -- opted for popularly elected county executives in addition to freeholder boards."
^Hudson County Executive Thomas DeGise and Democrats sweep county races: new face as register; incumbent freeholders win, only 2 faced challengers Charles Hack/The Jersey Journal | November 09, 2011
^About the County Executive, Hudson County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2024. "Born in Weehawken and raised in Jersey City, Hudson County Executive Craig Guy has spent his entire life in Hudson County."
^Heinis, John.
"Gov. Phil Murphy to swear in Craig Guy as 5th Hudson County executive on Jan. 4th", Hudson County View, December 20, 2023. Accessed January 25, 2024. "Murphy joined the Hudson County Democratic Organization in backing Guy eight months before the primary, which he won by a roughly 3-1 margin, with the governor then reiterating his support at another fundraiser in April. While Guy was unopposed in the November 7th general election, Murphy made it a priority to join him and others at a campaign rally in Jersey City."