Campaign Fundraising Fight Fueled by County GOP Leaders

A political fight between the leader of the Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders and Morris County Republican Chairman John Sette has escalated, leading to Sette telling the party's 700 members to boycott a planned golf outing in the county this month, according to The Daily Record.


In an email sent to party members Friday, Sette called fundraising actions of Freeholder Director Tom Mastrangelo "self-serving" and said they could damage the integrity of the party, The Daily Record reported. Mastrangelo did not respond to calls for comment by the newspaper.

Sette said Mastrangelo has violated a Morris County Republican Committee policy that does not allow candidates to host fundraisers for themselves between the June primary and November election as the party hosts its own fundraiser in October and uses money to pay for candidates' campaigns, according to the newspaper. Mastrangelo had a golf fundraiser scheduled for Sept. 18 in Jefferson Township and allegedly invited vendors who commonly attend the general party fundraiser.

By doing so, Sette has argued that the party could be competing for funds, as many of the vendors who may have contributed through the main fundraising event could now support just Mastrangelo, according to The Daily Record.