Oren Dabney

State Sen. Sandra Bolden Cunningham (D-Jersey City), shown being sworn in to the Senate by Richard Codey in November 2007, is a key player in Jersey City mayoral and legislative politics.

The announcement last week that Assemblyman Harvey Smith will run for Mayor of Jersey City means there will be an open State Assembly seat in Hudson County’s 31st district, which includes part of Jersey City and all of Bayonne.  The two key players in deciding who represents this district in the State Assembly are Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy (the Hudson County Democratic Chairman) and State Sen. Sandra Bolden Cunningham.  If Healy and Cunningham get together – which would mean Healy would be seeking re-election with the endorsement of his predecessor’s widow – than the endorsement of the Hudson County Democratic Organization may be tantamount to election this year.

Also at stake is the seat of Anthony Chiappone, a two-term Assemblyman (2004-06 and 2008-date) from Bayonne.  Chiappone is at odds with the newly-elected Mayor Bayonne, Mark Smith, a Healy ally.  But Cunningham likes Chiappone, who ran with her late husband in 2003 and with her in 2007.  If a deal for Cunningham to endorse Healy in the mayoral race includes keeping Chiappone in the Assembly, then Chiappone will likely return to Trenton.

The big race to watch in Jersey City next year is for mayor, but the politics of that contest are already spilling out into the legislature.

The recent buzz is that Jersey City Incinerator Authority CEO Oren Dabney is being positioned for an Assembly run in District 31 by State Sen. Sandra Cunningham, who herself is said to be considering a mayoral bid next year.

Reached for comment yesterday, Dabney wouldn’t commit one way or the other, but admitted that he’s mulling the possibility.

“I’ll do anything possible that’s going to benefit the city of Jersey City, period,” he said. “I haven’t made any decisions on anything at this point. So if anyone is giving information such as that I must be well-liked.”