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Louis Manzo (born February 28, 1955, inJersey City, New Jersey) is an AmericanDemocratic Partypolitician who served in theNew Jersey General Assembly from 2004 to 2008, where he represented the31st legislative district, and who ran unsuccessfully forMayor ofJersey City, New Jersey.
Manzo received aB.A. fromJersey City State College in health education. He began his career as a sanitarian with theJersey City Health Division in 1977.
Manzo unsuccessfully ran for mayor ofJersey City five times in the following elections.
| Year | Opponent |
|---|---|
| 1992 | Bret Schundler (R) |
| 1993 | Bret Schundler (R) |
| 2001 | Glenn D. Cunningham (D) |
| 2004 | Jerramiah T. Healy (D) |
| 2009 | Jerramiah T. Healy (D) |
In June 2007, he overwhelmingly[clarification needed] lost a bid in the Democratic primary for a seat in theState Senate toSandra Bolden Cunningham.
In December 2008, Manzo announced that he would wage an uphillcampaign for mayor of Jersey City against incumbent MayorJerramiah Healy. Though finishing in second place in a field of five candidates, Manzo was unable to force a runoff against Healy. Manzo won 26% of the vote, compared to 53% for Healy.[1]
Manzo was one of 44 people arrested on July 23, 2009, as part ofOperation Bid Rig, a joint operation of the FBI, IRS, and theU.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey into corruption and money laundering.[2] Manzo was charged with taking $27,500 in corrupt cash payments for use in his failed Jersey City mayoral campaign.[3][4] Manzo was charged with two counts of extortion under the federalHobbs Act, but in May 2010, U.S. District Court JudgeJose L. Linares dismissed the charges, ruling that the act only applies to elected officials. Manzo then faced two counts of violating theTravel Act, charging him with crossing state lines to commit a crime, and two counts of failing to report to authorities that others were collecting bribes.[5] On February 17, 2012, all remaining charges against Manzo were dismissed by Linares.[6]
Manzo filed suit to have his legal costs reimbursed by the government, but a court denied his claim.[7]
The bookRuthless Ambition: The Rise and Fall of Chris Christie authored by Manzo was released in April 2014.[8][9][10][11]