The late Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) had not yet been buried before his heir apparent became, well, apparent.
In the days after the fiery 87-year-old congressmember’s death, four seasoned elected officials opted to run in an ultra-abbreviated contest to replace him as the 9th Congressional District’s Democratic nominee this November.
Then the three Democratic chairs of the counties that make up the North Jersey district settled on a consensus choice, once again showing the influence...