JACKSON TOWNSHIP, NJ – A man was contacted by Jackson Police after he posted a picture of a noose on the campaign website of Jackson Township Mayor Michael Reina with the comment, “Mike needs a new necklace.”
Jackson police and the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office took the post seriously and investigated, ordering the man to avoid contact with the mayor and his family.
“On Friday, October 14, our campaign was made aware of a death threat made against me on social media. An individual identifying themselves as ‘Ron Cavanaugh’ wrote that I need ‘a new necklace’ accompanying a picture of a lynching noose,” Mayor Reina said.
A Facebook user identified as Ron Cavanaugh was identified by police and questioned. At this time, Reina has not said whether or not charges will be filed against Cavanaugh.
The incident was reported to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office and Jackson Township Police Department.
This year, there are no Democrats running for office in Jackson, and Reina said the attacks from his opponents are starting to cross the line.
“I have been through some tough campaigns in this business, and I’m not one to shy away from a fight, but this is uglier and more personal than I’ve ever seen,” Reina said today. “A threat against me is one thing but coming after my family and supporters is another. For God’s sake, to spit at a woman from a moving car just because you disagree with her choice for Mayor – is just disgusting.”
Reina said his team will not be going low during the campaign, his fourth as mayor of Jackson. Last week, his opponent Marty Flemming claimed Reina had “no principles” because he invited Democrats who have no candidate to a meet and greet at his campaign headquarters.
This week, another comment was made, calling his daughter a vulgar c-word name. Flemming called Reina today to apologize Thursday morning but said he was not connected to the attacks ongoing against Reina.
“Jackson is a great place to live, work, raise a family, and retire – I want to keep it that way. It has been my honor to serve the people of this town as Mayor for 14 years. But we need to turn down the temperature on this campaign,” Reina added. “That is why I am today pledging to run a campaign completely and totally focused on the candidates’ respective records and the issues we are facing in town – without any personal attacks on the candidates, our families, or other residents -and I call on my opponents to do the same.”
A prominent Democrat leader in Ocean County today said although the party has no candidates in Jackson, that doesn’t mean Democrats won’t have a role to play in the election as roughly 40% of voters are Democrats.
“You have a battle in Jackson between two Republican factions feuding and I think it’s going to be up to the Democrats in town to decide who wins this election,” the individual said under the condition of anonymity. “You might see an announcement from the Ocean County Democrats in the coming days regarding Flemming’s partisan attack against Democrats. Just because we’re not running a candidate, it doesn’t mean Democrats in Jackson don’t matter this year. We commend Reina for his offer to invite our members into the conversation in Jackson. It takes courage these days to cross party lines and treat all residents as equals in today’s divided and heated political climate.”
Reina, who is a Republican, invited township Democrats last week to attend his meet and greet. That invitation was quickly turned against him in a partisan attack by Flemming’s campaign, saying Reina’s decision to invite Democrats to his event showed that he “has no principles”.
Reina responded to Flemming’s attack by saying, “Look, I’m the mayor of Jackson. Not just the Republicans in Jackson but to all residents of Jackson. I represent everyone, regardless of their race, religion or political affiliation. “Our focus should be moving Jackson forward together, uniting all our residents, not creating ugly divisive politics for our own gain.”