New Jersey General Assembly
The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature.
Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...
since taking office on January 11, 2022, when he became the first openly gay Republican legislator in state history. He served as the Mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey from 2014 to 2017.
Early life and education
Raised in
Palisades Park, New Jersey
Palisades Park is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 20,292, an increase of 670 (+3.4%) from the 2010 census count of 19,622,
and
West New York
West New York is a town in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 52,912. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates ...
, Guardian graduated from
Don Bosco Preparatory High School
, motto_translation = To Increase in Knowledge and Grace
, accreditation = Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
, rival = Bergen Catholic High SchoolSaint Joseph Regional High School
, mascot =
, ma ...
. He graduated in 1975 from
Upsala College
Upsala College (UC) was a private college affiliated with the Swedish-American Augustana Synod (later the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church) and located in East Orange in Essex County, New Jersey in the United States. Upsala was founded in ...
.
Before being elected Mayor, Guardian served as an executive with the
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded ...
and at the Claridge Hotel, and headed Atlantic City's Special Improvement District for two decades prior to his election as mayor.
After his time as Mayor, Guardian was named as Business Administrator by the
Toms River, New Jersey
Toms River is a township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Its mainland portion is also a census-designated place of the same name, which serves as the county seat of Ocean County."Don Guardian taking over as Atlantic City mayor" , "WPVI-TV 6ABC Action News", January 1, 2014. In the
2013 United States elections
The 2013 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 5, 2013. This off-year election featured several special elections to the United States Congress; two gubernatorial races; state legislative elections in a few states; and numero ...
Lorenzo Langford
Lorenzo Tyrone Langford (born c. 1955) is an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician from Atlantic City, New Jersey, Atlantic City, New Jersey. He is a former Mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey and was the resort cit ...
to become Atlantic City's first
openly gay
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...
mayor and first
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
mayor since 1990."Don Guardian sworn in as Atlantic City's new mayor" ''
The Press of Atlantic City
''The Press of Atlantic City'' is the fourth-largest daily newspaper in New Jersey. Originally based in Pleasantville, it is the primary newspaper for southeastern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore. The newspaper designated market runs from Ware ...
'', January 1, 2014. Accessed January 13, 2022. In the 2017 election, Guardian lost re-election to Democratic city councilman, Frank Gilliam.
Guardian was elected to the State Assembly in 2021, alongside fellow Republican Claire Swift. They defeated the Democratic slate of incumbent Assemblyman John Armato and Atlantic County Commissioner Caren Fitzpatrick; the district's other Assemblyman, Democrat Vince Mazzeo, did not seek reelection to the Assembly in order to make what would ultimately be an unsuccessful bid for the district's State Senate seat.
On January 11, 2022, Guardian was sworn-in to the New Jersey General Assembly. His election makes him the first openly gay Republican legislator in state history and the only openly gay member of the New Jersey Legislature.
Committees
Committee assignments for the current session are:Assemblyman Donald A. Guardian New Jersey Legislature. Accessed April 10, 2022.
*Environment and Solid Waste
*Special Committee on Infrastructure and Natural Resources
*Tourism, Gaming and the Arts
District 2
Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the
New Jersey General Assembly
The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature.
Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...