By: Richard L. Smith
There are victories in politics, and then there are victories that feel personal to an entire city.
Tuesday night in the place where I was born and raised, Newark was more than just election results rolling across television screens and cell phones.
It was the story of perseverance, sacrifice, and a woman who spent four decades fighting for residents long before anyone handed her a title.
Donna Jackson’s election to an at-large seat on the Newark Municipal Council was not powered by a political machine, deep pockets, or flashy campaign events. It was powered by people.
Yup, Jackson who I call Donna Jay, running as an independent candidate, shocked many across Newark politics when she secured 6,735 votes — 11.48% of the vote — earning a citywide council seat during the May 12 election.
For many longtime observers of Newark politics, her victory represented the true definition of grassroots organizing.
Grassroots campaigns are built from the ground up — powered by ordinary residents instead of political organizations or wealthy donors.
They rely on door-knocking, community relationships, word-of-mouth support, and trust earned over years, sometimes decades. Donna Jackson’s campaign embodied exactly that.
With reportedly less than $2,000, a bullhorn, and decades of credibility in Newark neighborhoods, Jackson accomplished something many believed could not happen in modern city politics.
But for me, Donna Jackson’s victory is deeply personal.
Long before Donna became a councilwoman-elect, I first learned about leadership from her mother, the late and beloved Catherine Jackson, during my years at West Side High School.
I can still remember walking into those newly renovated biology labs on the third floor during my junior year.
Ms. Jackson taught with a softness that commanded respect without ever raising her voice. She did not need to yell to control a classroom. Her calmness was her power.
She taught biology, but she also taught life.
Around October of my junior year, Ms. Jackson approached me and asked if I wanted to become a peer leader representing West Side High School.
About a dozen of us were selected that year, and Ms. Jackson took us everywhere, teaching us leadership, responsibility, and service.
But one thing she constantly spoke about was her daughter, Donna.
She would show us pictures and tell stories about how Donna was already out in Newark neighborhoods helping residents solve problems that many politicians never even stopped to acknowledge.
Ms. Jackson once told me I reminded her of a son and encouraged me to become a leader, but she always pointed toward Donna as an example of what true service looked like.
Years later, after forming RLS Media, I witnessed it for myself.
When young shooting victims were hospitalized, Donna was there comforting families. When residents stood outside apartment buildings with no heat, Donna was there.
When communities felt ignored, Donna was there — sometimes with no money, no official position, and no expectation of recognition.
For 40 years, she stayed in the trenches.
Donna often sacrificed her own comfort to help others. According to her, there were times she did not even have steady income herself, yet she still found ways to show up for people in crisis.
Whether residents agreed with every stance she took or not, one thing nobody could deny was that Donna Jackson never disappeared when the cameras turned off.
She fought loudly when necessary, quietly when needed, but consistently for decades.
That consistency mattered.
And on May 12, Newark residents remembered.
As election results came in Tuesday night, I had a chance to speak with Donna by phone. While many around the city were stunned by the outcome, Donna simply kept repeating one thing:
“Rich, I am overwhelmed.”
I told her something from my heart.
“Ms. Jackson is looking down on us, and she’s proud.”
And I truly believe she is.
Catherine Jackson’s lessons did not stop in that biology classroom at West Side High School. Her vision for leadership lives through the countless students she inspired and through the daughter who just earned a seat in Newark’s council chambers after a lifetime of serving people without one.
For me, Donna Jackson’s victory is not just political.
It is proof that sometimes the people still recognize the ones who never stopped fighting for them.
After 40 years of sacrifice, Newark finally gave Donna Jackson an opportunity to walk into the big room.
And somewhere above us, I believe my dear West Side High School Peer Leadership Advisor Ms. Catherine Jackson is smiling.
