SOUTH TOMS RIVER – A rally for Joe Biden urged people to honk if they are “ridin’ with Biden,” and there were a surprising amount of drivers honking for a largely Republican area.
Sure, there were plenty of cars that didn’t honk at all, and some drivers that shouted four-letter words instead, but the members of the rally were pleased by the support for the Democrat.
The rally started with just a half dozen people holding signs along Route 9 in Mathis Plaza, the small park joined by a bridge to Huddy Park on the other side of the Toms River. Eventually, that number tripled but it was in stark contrast to the hundreds of people who flooded Point Pleasant Beach for a Trump rally or the boat parades that have been all over the news. This was not the first time there had been a rally here and more are planned for future Saturday mornings.
Debbie DiDonato, South Toms River, organized the rally, as she had organized previous ones. She has a five-month-old that serves as her inspiration.
“I’m doing it for her and her future,” she said. “I think (Biden’s) the only one who can protect us.”
She said she’s been seeing more support for the Democrat challenger. Every day seems to bring up an issue that is a deal-breaker for Republican voters – whether it is how he insulted veterans, his canceling of COVID aid to families and businesses, or his handling of race relations.
The rally wound up taking place the day after Trump announced he tested positive for coronavirus. A woman had told DiDonato “Up until last night, I was voting for Trump.”
Pat Talnagi came from Manchester to hold a sign and cheer for the former vice president.
“The last time I campaigned for anyone was for Nixon,” she said. “I’ve been a Republican my whole life.”
Mario and Christine Poliviou, Toms River residents, said that in Ocean County, Democrats are the silent majority. People are afraid to speak up.
The event was also visited by candidates running for local office, such as Freeholder candidate Helen Dela Cruz from Lacey and 4th District Congressional candidate Stephanie Schmid.
Dela Cruz said she expects a bigger blue wave across the country than what was seen in 2018.
Schmid said if you only look at voter registrations, the power balance can be misleading.
“Ocean County is coded as Republican when 50% are independents,” she said. “Independents have been breaking for Democrats.”
Barbara Reilly, president of the Brick Democratic Club, said she has received a lot of phone calls for Biden signs, and many of them are from Toms River. People want to get involved. They want to help in some way. She also noted that there are more people registering with the Democrats here than ever before.
They want to “Make America Normal Again,” she said.
