NJ-11: Dean Dafis (D) enters special election for Sherrill's House seat

Dean Dafis, a township committeeman and former mayor of Maplewood, announced this morning that he’ll run in the special election for New Jersey’s 11th congressional district once Sherrill departs Congress. No fewer than eight other Democrats – and counting – have launched campaigns for the same seat, but Dafis starts out with a sizable voter base in his deeply progressive corner of suburban North Jersey.

“New Jersey is at the edge of a cliff,” Dafis said in his campaign announcement. “Funding for our schools, critical infrastructure investments, housing and healthcare supports – they’re all on the chopping block. Without the promised money from Washington, our state budget can’t fill these gaps. I’m going to Washington to speak truth to power, put people over process and community investment over markets, and build new and sustainable safety nets for working people.”

Dafis was raised in Philadelphia, the son of Greek immigrants whom he said fled dictatorship at home and “came to this country with little more than hope.” After earning his law degree, Dafis worked as a public defender, Big Law attorney, and marriage equality activist before eventually landing in his current position as a homelessness-focused official in the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs.

In 2017, Dafis ran for elected office for the first time, winning a seat on the Maplewood Township Committee. Four years later, Dafis was elevated to a two-year term as Maplewood’s mayor, a position that typically rotates among the township’s committeemembers.




https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/dean-dafis-enters-special-election-for-sherrills-house-seat/