A bipartisan group of political leaders is calling on a Sussex County commissioner to resign after he was accused of lying about serving as a Navy SEAL.

Sussex County Commissioner William Hayden, a Republican, told the leadership team of the Sussex County Republican Committee that he had combat experience as a Navy SEAL and spoke publicly about his time in the military, the committee said in a statement last week.

“Hayden has not been forthright regarding his military service,” the committee said.

Hayden declined to comment and referred questions to his attorney, who said the county commissioner never claimed in campaign literature, advertisements, biographies, websites, social media or public statements to be “a Marine, Navy SEAL, or indeed of any military service at all.”

Robert Kovic, Hayden’s attorney, said he directed his client to remain silent “until the probable crimes against him can be investigated and determined.”

Hayden is the former president of the Skylands Tea Party and was elected to the Sussex County Board of Commissioners in 2022.

A spokesman for the U.S. Navy told NJ Advance Media the military would need Hayden’s alleged service dates to confirm or deny he ever served. The military’s database shows two people who served with the name William J. Hayden, but neither record indicates service as a SEAL.

The Sussex County Republican Committee said Hayden spoke to party leaders, to volunteers and at public meetings about his combat experience.

The committee said it “found Freedom of Information Act requests showing he was never a Navy SEAL or served in the Naval Service. We conclude that he has disrespected all veterans and misrepresented himself to our party and the public,” the group said in a Facebook post.

“Hayden’s betrayal of friends, supporters, voters and the county is clearly evident at this point. If there is one honorable thing left for him to do, it is to resign and cease disgracing the office of County Commissioner,” the post concluded.

Both New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy and U.S. Rep. Andy Kim — who are running for the Democratic nomination for New Jersey’s U.S. Senate seat — also called for Hayden to resign along with several other elected officials.

The Sussex County Republican Committee also alleged Hayden applied for a military veteran’s credit on his New Jersey tax forms.

Kovic, Hayden’s attorney, alleged the documents referenced by the county committee “appear to be fraudulent.”

Kovic is the former executive director of the Sussex County Republican Committee, the group accusing his client of lying about his military service. On Sunday, the committee announced chairman Joe LaBarbera had appointed a new executive director and said Kovic was no longer in the position.

Kovic said he had not seen the alleged tax returns in which Hayden claimed to be a military veteran, but he would demand to see the documents.

“At that point, we will have them reviewed and certified by the Internal Revenue Service and the New Jersey Department of Revenue. The IRS has already been notified about this matter,” Kovic said in a statement sent to NJ Advance Media.

Murphy, New Jersey’s first lady and a Senate candidate, called for Hayden to step down via her social media account.

“It’s time for accountability,” Murphy wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “Bill Hayden must resign as Commissioner for shamelessly fabricating military service claims for political gain and disgracing the trust of the public.”

Kim, who is running against Murphy, joined the calls for Hayden to resign.

“The people of Sussex County deserve public servants that they can trust,” Kim wrote on X.

“Commissioner Hayden has broken that public trust and I join Democratic and Republican leadership in the county in calling for him to step down. If he doesn’t, I will work as hard as possible with Sussex Democrats to help elect a Democrat to his seat,” said Kim.

Kim and Murphy are two of four candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for New Jersey’s U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democrat Robert Menendez, who has not said whether he will run for re-election as he faces federal corruption charges.

Representatives of the state’s 24th legislative district, which includes Sussex County, have also called for Hayden to resign.

“He needs to do right by our veterans and those currently serving in the armed forces, the voters who supported him, Sussex County government, and the Sussex County Republican Committee and leave office immediately,” state Sen. Parker Space, Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia and Assemblyman Michael Inganamort said in a joint statement.

The Sussex County Democratic Committee also called for his resignation in a statement released last week.

In addition to serving on the Sussex County Board of Commissioners, Hayden also represented Sussex County on the New Jersey Republican State Committee, a role he’s running for again. Hayden announced his candidacy in December on his YouTube channel.

He has clashed with other political leaders in the past.

Hayden filed a lawsuit against U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., and other Democratic leaders in 2022 alleging they defamed him by calling him a member of the far-right Oath Keepers and suggesting he’s a white supremacist. Hayden has denied being a member of the extremist organization. The lawsuit was dismissed in May 2022.

Last month, the Sussex County Board of Commissioners voted to censure Hayden for allegedly violating the trust of citizens “by and through his harassing, inflammatory, spurious, surreptitious, and other calculated actions and inaction,” according to a video of the public meeting.

Sussex County Board of Commissioners Director Jill Space, wife of state Sen. Parker Space, accused Hayden at the meeting of a long list of infractions. They included failing to disclose threats of physical violence against other elected officials and their families to law enforcement and engaging in a relationship with subordinate employee while an elected official.

Space also accused Hayden of disclosing information from privileged executive session to others and disseminating false and misleading information about county programs.

Hayden was not present at the Feb. 14 meeting where the board voted to censure him.

Jill Space did not return requests for comment on the most recent allegations against Hayden.

©2024 Advance Local Media LLC.

Visit nj.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.