Quick Facts
Biography
Donald Cresitello was the Mayor of Morristown, New Jersey.
Policies
He has been active in reducing the presence of illegal immigrants in Morristown. He has attempted to have his police officers deputized as immigration officers. He has asked federal authorities to assist local police in cracking down on illegal immigration in the town and employers that hire illegal immigrants. He wrote a letter to then-United States attorney Chris Christie in this effort.
His attempt to have local law enforcement officials coordinate with federal authorities is consistent with Section 287(g) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.
Political career
In 1982 he ran in the New Jersey Senate Democratic primary and lost to Frank Lautenberg. In 1997 he switched to the Republican party but lost the mayoral primary to Jay Delaney and then went on to win the Morristown mayoral election against Scott Whitenack in 2005. On March 28, 2008 it was announced that he would again face U.S. Senator Lautenberg in the Democratic primary. On April 8, he announced an official run for the Senate against Frank Lautenberg, which he subsequently lost, receiving only 10% of the vote.
On June 2, 2009 Cresitello lost a Democratic primary challenge from Morristown's zoning board chairman Tim Dougherty.