In 1970, Matturri became a candidate for Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, in the May Non-Partisan election. The two-term incumbent, Hugh Joseph Addonizio, was seeking re-election in a city that was experiencing extraordinary social unrest. The 1967 Newark riots were a major civil disturbance in Newark between July 12 and July 17, 1967. The five days of rioting, looting, and destruction left 26 dead and hundreds injured. In the period leading up to the riots, police racial profiling, redlining, and lack of opportunity in education, training, and jobs led local African-American residents to feel powerless and disenfranchised. In particular, many felt they had been largely excluded from meaningful political representation and often suffered police brutality.