According to the Bergen Record, Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman "Goomba" Joe Ferriero announced yesterday that he will resign effective January 22nd.

Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman Joseph Ferriero announced Friday -- after months of pressure from fellow Democrats -- that he will resign as the group's leader, effective Jan. 22.

Ferriero also declared that he was ending his leave of absence immediately to "assure a smooth transition."

A federal grand jury indicted Ferriero and BCDO counsel Dennis Oury this fall on charges of conspiracy to commit fraud. Ferriero's trial is set for September.

"I believe that it would adversely affect our party and our candidates if I were to continue to serve as chairman while on trial several weeks before the November election," he said in a letter. "It is for that reason that I am calling a special county committee meeting for Jan. 22, 2009, to elect a successor."

The move avoids a fight within the BCDO as they had called on Ferriero to resign by this coming Thursday if he were yet to prove his innocence on charges of charges of conspiracy to commit fraud.

Several prominent Democrats, including Bergen Congressman Steve Rothman, had tried to oust Ferriero. But Rothman didn't have the muscle to budge the Ferriero machine.

Democrats, of course, are trying at all costs to get the Ferriero monkey off their back with key elections upcoming this November in the state, starting with the Governorship and the State Legislature. The next move will be fore the BCDO to select a new Chairman who will have the task of cleaning up the BCDO's image - and trying to make Bergen voters forget. 

But that will be a tough task. Ferriero's trial on corruption charges are still scheduled to take place in Septemeber smack dab in the middle of the election season, giving Bergen Republicans a golden opportunity to exploit this issue. The only question is: can they?