Pressing Forward: Aiming Blame Where It Belongs
BY RANN MILLER | AC JosepH Media
June 10 marked the Democratic primary in New Jersey. One key race on primary day was the race for Camden City mayor. In a city with a majority Democratic population, the primary serves as the de facto election, as whoever wins in June is likely to win in November.
The winner was the current incumbent, Victor Carstarphen, over challenger Theo Spencer. His slate of council candidates collected two of the three contested city council seats. The remaining seat was retained by incumbent councilwoman Sheila Davis, who ran against the Carstarphen slate.
Much to the dismay of his detractors, who have legitimate concerns about his attachment to the Norcross machine affecting his handling of city affairs, Carstarphen won relatively easily. Low voter turnout played a part. Primaries in Camden serve as a formality of sorts, with voter turnout below 20 percent, candidates backed by the Norcross machine generally coast to victory.
According to folks on the ground, voter turnout increased in this primary year, but the result was familiar.
And yet, fault is placed squarely on residents who, for one reason or another, do not vote in municipal elections for Camden’s political woes.
Camden has been victim to Democratic machine politics, specifically under the helm of George Norcross, for over forty years. Machine politics is bad for people. They reward those who conform to the machine’s desires over the will of the people, while punishing those who speak on behalf of the people.
They have a knack for corruption and a lack of accountability, they perpetuate economic inequality and poverty in cities while providing some people of color jobs for cover, they displace Black and Brown people from power — Camden does not govern the police force or its schools — and they displace Black and Brown people from their homes.
I get the frustration with the usual outcome that continues machine domination of Black and Brown people, and the natural inclination to point the finger at the people who have the “power” to change their circumstances.
When that blame comes from outside the city, it’s usually wrapped in a bow of paternalism, ignorance, and white savior-like racism. However, when blame originates within the city, it hurts. It hurts because those folks love Camden and her people.
They only want what’s best for Camden and her people. I know they do. I also know there is validity to holding voters responsible for their vote, or lack thereof. I get it.
However, blaming Camden residents for the continued exploitation of the city and themselves is low-hanging fruit. Blaming voters — specifically Black voters — is a common refrain echoed throughout varying levels of electoral politics.
For example, Black voters were blamed for Donald Trump in 2016 and 2024. The truth is, Hillary Clinton was an ineffective candidate in 2016, and Kamala Harris was similarly so in 2024, on top of the reality that Democrats did no favors with Biden’s late drop and anointing of Harris, but I digress.
The truth is that if shifting elections were a priority, more focus would be on finding out why the constituency you count on didn’t vote, rather than simply blaming them for not voting. Too often, we tend to assess symptoms rather than investigate their root cause, because, in reality, we’re socialized to admonish people when they don’t do what we want or expect them to do. We don’t meet them where they are and walk with them to the destination that’ll serve us both.
Besides, the real reason for low voter turnout in Camden is the Norcross machine. Here’s how.
The majority of Camden voters are Democrats. Those who are not are mainly independent. The city’s election structure is partisan, making it challenging for independent candidates to achieve a strong showing, let alone win an election.
Independent candidates cannot compete in primaries, and once in the general election, the machine — not only citywide, but statewide — can focus its resources on their candidate, as opposed to using those resources to win a primary and a general election.
This structure helps make the democratic primary a formality in the city, thus discouraging voter turnout, as residents are largely aware of the outcome, regardless of whether they participate or not.
Additionally, for years, party-backed candidates received preferential space on the ballot known as the line. The line gave candidates in the party a competitive advantage because of the space where they’re located on the ballot. Although the New Jersey Supreme Court recently overturned it, it had maintained party control for years.
For years, these tactics created a feeling of hopelessness among voters, who believed that their vote didn’t really count because the machine had power over who won and who lost.
Combine that with the reality of state occupation of Camden’s municipal government (from 2002-2010), its police and schools — a result of machine politics — and you have a populace who refuses to participate in what they may see as a rigged process.
Some may argue that these things are excuses for residents’ failure to exercise their right, a right that, if enough people exercised it, could lead to real political change.
However, add to the above-mentioned political reality the financial reality of families in the city, who, under the burden of (racial) capitalism, prioritize everyday survival and rest where they can find it over a political system that has failed them by failing to speak to the issues that impact them most versus 25-year tax breaks for corporations and you have a blueprint for voter disengagement amongst people of color.
That’s no excuse; it’s the reality.
Encouraging people to vote, and to be clear, I believe people should vote, you must address the real conditions plaguing people on a ground level. This is how Zohran Mamdani won his primary for mayor of New York.
He addressed the issues of the working class and the poor in a city characterized by significant economic inequality. He listened to disaffected voters… again HE LISTENED to disaffected voters to analyze why and to figure out how best to encourage them to participate in the electoral process.
He also knocked on 1 million doors with the help of a team of volunteers and small donors, but he was relentless.
Camden has dedicated, passionate, and hope-filled folks who listen to the concerns of residents. However, disaffected voters in the city need more people who will listen to them rather than talk to them. Simply blaming them for not voting won’t win an election at any point.
So, the word of the day is patience. I say that as an educator who works with students to understand concepts that contradict what they’ve been taught or concepts that are too complex for a run-of-the-mill analysis.
Patience is essential when engaging disaffected voters. Patience doesn’t necessarily bear fruit immediately, but it charts a path to the place we want to be. I do not doubt that well-meaning folks want Camden liberated from machine politics, and I stand with them.
But first, we must be liberated from always pointing the finger at ourselves. It’s a trick of white supremacy.
BIO: Rann Miller is a writer, author, and educator. A graduate of Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Rann teaches AP United States History, is the author of Resistance Stories from Black History for Kids, and is an opinion columnist, featured in various news outlets exploring the intersections of race, education, politics, culture and history. You can follow on “X” @RealRannMiller, on IG, and TikTok @realrannmiller.
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