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The flag controversy ended up being the last straw for fellow Republicans who were already at war with now-former Rochelle Park Mayor Perrin Mosca over what they said was abusive behavior.
Three who sit on the Township Committee voted 4-0 with Democrat Linda Boniface to oust Mosca earlier this week.
Deputy Mayor Jennifer Appice took over as acting mayor following the work session vote on Wednesday, June 14 to give the committee time to select a temporary successor in advance of this fall's municipal election.
Mosca, who remains a committeeman, is scheduled to run for re-election in November.
Mosca, who allegedly has skipped recent meetings, "embarrassed the township and brought its governance to a screeching halt, threatening two decades of progress,” GOP Municipal Chairman Frank Valenzuela said
Valenzuela, a former mayor himself who once backed Mosca, said he "used his position to create a negative atmosphere guided by his personal ideals versus what is best for the residents of Rochelle Park.”
Critics said the now-former mayor "called everyone he knew" to join his bid to prevent the pride flag raising. Some fellow Republicans disagreed, allegedly prompting the "not good Catholics" comment, they said.
Mosca also threatened retribution against those who disagreed with him, they said.
For his part, Mosca said he never made the "not good Catholics" remarks and claimed that "somebody with a political motive" provided "incorrect details."
He then blasted Boniface, who he said "gave the Nazi salute not once but twice" during a meeting last month and, according to him, also called an underage member of the audience a "serial killer...I can see it in his eyes."
ROCHELLE PARK TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE MEETING: May 24, 2023 (YouTube)
Mosca -- who teaches physics, chemistry and forensic science at Lyndhurst High School while coaching girls basketball there -- said to "consider the political motives" of Valenzuela, who he said is "struggling for relevancy within the Republican [P]arty."
Mosca said he'd been elected mayor by the committee for back-to-back terms and currently has the support of the Rochelle Park Republican Club.
As for the pride flag, the former mayor said:
"My position is that private flags do not belong on public property. The only flags that represent the entire community of Rochelle Park are the American Flag, the NJ state flag, the County flag and our Township flag. All other flags will only create division and open up our township to a myriad of other issues. I am not the only one who believes this to be the best policy."
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