Tanisha Gomez Steps Out of Comfort Zone to Run for Cumberland County Commissioner
Photo courtesy of Tanisha Gomez
BY CLYDE HUGHES | AC JosepH Media
VINELAND – Political newcomer Tanisha Gomez said that while running for Cumberland County commissioner has pushed her outside of her “comfort zone,” she is no stranger to serving the community or listening closely to its concerns.
A nurse by trade and a longtime community advocate, Gomez is seeking one of three open seats in the crowded Democratic primary on June 2. If she finishes among the top three, she will advance to face the Republican slate in November’s general election.
“This has me totally out of my comfort zone,” Gomez said about the months of campaigning she has already put in around Cumberland County. “But you know, when you’re following purpose, it just makes it worth the effort.”
Gomez said her years of community involvement make her a strong candidate despite her lack of political experience. She believes her work across multiple sectors has prepared her to speak for residents who often feel unheard.
“I’m older now and I am a longtime Cumberland County resident,” Gomez told Front Runner New Jersey. “I’ve been working as a nurse by trade, ended up in early childcare with nonprofits and making connections with people.
“I love everybody in the community. I’m Hispanic, so I don’t know if you know how we roll but if you’re neighbors for a long time or work with somebody over a year, you’re now family. I feel like Cumberland County is my family, that’s just the way I vibe. I love making friends and family everywhere I go.”
Gomez said her experience as a nurse has shown her the realities many residents face, and she believes she can use data to identify health?related challenges and address them at the county level.
“I’m starting to look more at statistics as I’m getting older,” Gomez said. “As I’m getting wiser, I’ve come to find out I like to read, and data is very important. I can use data to make changes to fix things. The data lets us know if something is too high in this area, we need to do something to bring that number down and to help the people.”
As a candidate, Gomez emphasizes community partnership, responsible budgeting, and expanding opportunities for working families. She is running as part of the Cumberland County Regular Democratic Organization.
She has been active in local cultural events, school?based initiatives, and efforts to elevate Latino leadership across South Jersey. Her campaign reflects her long?held belief that county government should be inclusive, responsive, and rooted in the lived experiences of the people it serves.
“I’m not a politician, I’m a real person,” Gomez said. “I’m going through the real struggle, and when I go to represent you, the average person, I’ll do it with our eyes, because our eyes haven’t been on the table.
“If anybody asked me, how can you say that? I’ll say have you seen the prices? Have you seen the homeless? It’s not working. Just because people are working doesn’t mean it works.”
Gomez was one of the active Latina supporters during the campaign of New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill. That election cycle also marked a milestone in Cumberland County, with Yolanda Garcia Balicki becoming the first Latina elected to the Board of Commissioners.
Gomez said she shared that campaigning experience with her sister, Jasmine “Jazzy” Gomez?Demby.
“We started knocking on doors for two other campaigns, the last one being with Yolanda Garcia Balicki and Johnny Capizola. We found walking for Mikie Sherrill, and then seeing them win, it was like, ‘Wow, this really works.’”
Until recently, Gomez and Gomez?Demby were running together for two of the three available seats. Gomez?Demby withdrew earlier this month due to a conflict between her federally funded job and the national Hatch Act.
“I’ve always looked up to my sister, and I’ve always loved the way that she does things, and her passion,” Gomez said. “I found out we were in the same community, so I just started following her doors, and that’s how I got into the Democratic Party. Once I started to get involved, we both started volunteering.”
As the primary approaches, Gomez said she wants voters to know she is running based on her own lived experiences—standing alongside residents, not from a political script crafted elsewhere. She said her platform is shaped by the people she has met, the neighborhoods she has served, and the parents she connected with while raising her two children.
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