New Jersey › Essex County › Essex County Commissioner At-Large
8 candidates are tracked for Essex County Commissioner At-Large on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Christine McGrath, Abdur R. Yasin, Deborah Engel, Wayne L. Richardson, Demetrius Eley, Daniela Ferreira Almeida, Douglas Freeman and Sahwa DeFrank. Candidate information follows official Essex County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
Four at-large seats are on the November 2026 ballot. In the June 2, 2026 Democratic primary, Christine McGrath (38,543 votes), Abdur Yasin (32,657), Deborah Engel (31,211) and incumbent Wayne Richardson (30,549) won the four nominations over Shawn Klein (28,773) and Marques-Aquil Lewis (19,444), per the New Jersey Globe; Engel's win was notable because she lacked the county Democratic organization's backing. Republicans Demetrius Eley, Daniela Ferreira Almeida, Douglas Freeman and Sahwa DeFrank were endorsed by the Essex County Republican Party for the four seats; Republicans have not won an at-large commissioner seat since 1971, per the New Jersey Globe.
McGrath has served on the Verona Town Council since 2019 and chairs the Verona Democratic Committee, per search-aggregated local reporting. She has served as president of the Friends of the Verona Library and the Junior Woman's Club, co-created Verona Fights Hunger Week, and has been involved with the gun-violence-prevention group Moms Demand Action, per search-aggregated local reporting. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Christine McGrath.
Yasin is a West Orange fire captain and serves as the West Orange Democratic Municipal Chairman, per search-aggregated local reporting. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Abdur R. Yasin.
Deborah Engel is a longtime Maplewood and South Orange community leader who served three years on the Maplewood Township Committee, including one year as deputy mayor, and chaired the board of South Orange Downtown, per The Village Green. She founded two local businesses, Work and Play (a coworking space with childcare) and General Store Cooperative (a co-retail incubator for small businesses), and won her Democratic nomination in June 2026 without the county party's backing. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Deborah Engel.
2026 priorities (per the per The Village Green candidate profile)
- Address rising costs of healthcare, housing, groceries, utilities, insurance and transportation
- Expand shared services between municipalities to cut costs and improve efficiency
- Invest in infrastructure, including complete streets, pedestrian and bike infrastructure, flood mitigation and EV charging
Wayne L. Richardson is the incumbent Essex County Commissioner for one of the four at-large seats and was the only sitting at-large commissioner to seek re-election in 2026, per the New Jersey Globe. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Wayne L. Richardson.
Demetrius Eley of West Orange is one of four Republican nominees for the four at-large Essex County Commissioner seats, endorsed by the Essex County Republican Party. He previously ran unsuccessfully for the 34th Legislative District Assembly seat, per the New Jersey Globe. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Demetrius Eley.
Daniela Ferreira Almeida is one of four Republican nominees for the four at-large Essex County Commissioner seats, endorsed by the Essex County Republican Party. She previously ran unsuccessfully for the 29th Legislative District Assembly seat, per the New Jersey Globe. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Daniela Ferreira Almeida.
Douglas Freeman of Newark is one of four Republican nominees for the four at-large Essex County Commissioner seats, endorsed by the Essex County Republican Party, per the New Jersey Globe. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Douglas Freeman.
Sahwa DeFrank of Newark is one of four Republican nominees for the four at-large Essex County Commissioner seats, endorsed by the Essex County Republican Party, per the New Jersey Globe. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Sahwa DeFrank.
