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Mother, newlywed: What we know about slain NJ councilmember Eunice Dwumfour
By
Nancy Solomon
,
Jon Campbell
,
Bahar Ostadan
,
Matt Katz
and
Audrey Cooper
Published Feb 2, 2023
Modified Feb 2, 2023
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Nelia Rodriguez via Facebook
By
Nancy Solomon
,
Jon Campbell
,
Bahar Ostadan
,
Matt Katz
and
Audrey Cooper
Published Feb 2, 2023
Modified Feb 2, 2023
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The New Jersey councilwoman gunned down near her home Wednesday night was a mother, a newlywed and a political newcomer who ran for office alongside her close friend, Christian Onuoha, the current council president.
Here’s what we know about Eunice Dwumfour:
Political background
Dwumfour, 30, was elected to the Sayreville Borough Council in 2021, encouraged by Onuoha, who previously had run unsuccessful campaigns for Congress and the state Legislature.
She had already been active in local issues through her work on the borough’s Human Relations Commission, a group that focuses on diversity and bias incidents in the small town, said fellow commission member and Sayreville police chaplain Nelia Rodriguez.
The commission had been scheduled to meet on Thursday, but the meeting was canceled upon news of Dwumfour’s death, Rodriguez said.
Dwumfour ran for office alongside Onuoha. The two Republicans aimed to unseat a pair of Democratic council incumbents. For her part, Dwumfour said she wanted to improve local roads and infrastructure and foster economic growth.
What we know so far
- New Jersey Councilmember Eunice Dwumfour was found shot and killed on Wednesday night.
- At 7:22 p.m. Wednesday night, police responded to a report of shots fired near Samuel Circle in Sayreville, and found Dwumfour had been shot multiple times in her vehicle
- Dwumfour was a 30-year-old Republican member of the Borough Council since 2022.
The election was remarkably close: The duo eked out a win by a couple hundred votes. Their victories changed the previous balance of power on the formerly Democratic council, leaving it to Mayor Victoria Kilpatrick, a Democrat, to cast any tie-breaking votes. Despite their different party affiliations, Kilpatrick appointed Onuoha council president last month.
Reached by phone, Onuoha described his relationship with Dwumfour: “To me she’s a sister … I don’t think I have the words.”
Borough Business Administrator Glenn Skarzynski said the two were part of the same congregation.
Under the Sayreville borough code, the mayor can appoint someone to fill Dwumfour's seat for the rest of the year. The council must confirm the nomination. The final year of her term, which runs through 2024, will be decided in this year's general election.
Sayreville is a primarily middle-class borough of about 45,000 people in Middlesex County. It is located on Raritan Bay and the south banks of the Raritan River about 40 miles south of Manhattan and 70 miles from Philadelphia. It is perhaps best known as the hometown of John Bongiovi, better known as the rocker Jon Bon Jovi.
Personal history
Dwumfour had recently married, although few people knew about the nuptials, Rodriguez said. Dwumfour also leaves behind a young daughter, she said.
At the time of her death, Dwumfour was working as a part-time emergency medical technician and an information technology project manager, Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said Dwumfour was the child of African immigrants. She grew up in Newark, and was one of the top 10 graduating seniors in her class at Weequahic High School in 2010, according to the school’s yearbook.
In that yearbook, each senior was asked what they wanted to be remembered for. Dwumfour’s answer: “My weirdness and independence.”
Dwumfour attended William Paterson University in New Jersey from 2011 to 2016, graduating in January 2017, earning a bachelor’s degree in women's and gender studies with a minor in social justice, according to university spokesperson Mary Beth Zeman. While in college, she worked as an EMT, Dwumfour told the outlet TAPInto in 2021.
During her campaign for the council seat, she said she had lived in Sayreville for more than five years.
Those who knew her well remarked on the importance of her Christian religion. Among other things, her friends said Dwumfour was active in the Champions Royal Assembly USA Campus Ministry, a home for many in the Nigerian community.
Neighbor Chyann Brown said several residents, including herself, heard loud shots fired in rapid succession on Wednesday night.
Dwumfour and her family never created problems for the community, Brown said.
“She was nice. She spoke every time we saw her,” she said. “We’ve never seen anything bad with her. She was never problematic, never noisy.”
Sayreville’s Mayor Kilpatrick said in a statement that Dwumfour was a “woman of deep faith (who) worked hard to integrate her strong Christian beliefs into her daily life as a person and as a community leader.”
Staff writers David Brand, Matt Katz and Michelle Bocanegra contributed to this report.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misstated the relationship between Christian Onuoha and Eunice Dwumfour. They were close friends who often referred to each other as "brother" and "sister." A previous version also misspelled Chyann Brown's first name.
Staff writer Jon Campbell contributed to this report.
Tagged
public safety
new jersey
Nancy Solomon
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Jon Campbell
Jon Campbell covers the New York State Capitol for WNYC and Gothamist. Prior to that, he covered the Capitol for more than a decade for the USA TODAY Network. He has twice earned the Walter T. Brown Memorial Award, an honor given annually by the Legislative Correspondents Association alumni for outstanding state government coverage. Jon grew up in the Buffalo area and graduated from the University at Albany. Got a tip? Email Jon at [email protected] or Signal at JonCampbellNY.90.
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Bahar Ostadan
Bahar Ostadan covers the NYPD and public safety. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or message Bahar on Signal at 646-740-7335.
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Matt Katz
Matt Katz is a former WNYC & Gothamist reporter.
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Audrey Cooper
Audrey Cooper is the editor in chief of WNYC at New York Public Media, where she oversees one of the nation’s most influential local news operations. She joined WNYC after serving as the editor in chief of the San Francisco Chronicle, where she became the youngest woman in U.S. history to run a major metro newsroom.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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