John B. Paolella (born February 14, 1949) is an American

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

politician who served in both houses of the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

from the 38th district– one term 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 for ...

and one term in the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232, ...

. Born in Hackensack on February 14, 1949, Paolella attended

Bergen Catholic High School Bergen Catholic High School is an all-male Roman Catholic high school in Oradell, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grade. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Coll ...

and graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1971. He received a J.D. degree from

Seton Hall University School of Law Seton Hall University School of Law is the law school of Seton Hall University, and is located in downtown Newark, New Jersey. Seton Hall Law is the only private law school in New Jersey, and, according to the ''U.S. News & World Report'' ranking ...

and was admitted to the

New Jersey Bar The New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New Jersey. History In June 1899, 74 attorneys launched NJSBA in Atlantic City; annual dues were $5.00. Within the next decade, the Canon of Ethics was ...

in 1976. He served as a legal advisor to then-Assemblyman

W. Cary Edwards William Cary Edwards (July 20, 1944 – October 20, 2010) was a New Jersey politician who served as the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1986 to 1989. Early life He was born on July 20, 1944, in Paterson, New Jersey or Ridgewood, New Je ...

. In his first bid for the Legislature, Paolella and Republican running mate

Louis F. Kosco Louis F. Kosco (born June 5, 1932) is an American Republican Party politician who served in both the New Jersey General Assembly and the New Jersey Senate. Biography Born in Hackensack, Kosco grew up in Ridgefield Park, where he attended Lin ...

defeated incumbent Democratic Assemblymen

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...

and

Paul Contillo Paul J. Contillo (born July 8, 1929) is an American Democratic Party politician who represented the Bergen County-based 38th Legislative District in the New Jersey State Legislature during three separate tenures. Career Contillo served as a Co ...

. After serving one term there, Paolella ran for the Senate in 1981 and defeated incumbent

John Skevin John M. Skevin (June 14, 1927 – October 18, 1993) was an American Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature. Early life and education Born in West New York, New Jersey, Skevin attended Memorial High Sc ...

. Paolella served a two-year term in the Senate before being defeated for reelection in 1983 by Contillo who went on to serve for eight more years in the Senate and a second brief stint in the Assembly in 2013. Paolella later moved to Bay Head and got involved in local politics there. In 2014, running on a Republican ticket with fellow

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Steve Lonegan Steven Mark Lonegan (born April 27, 1956) is an American businessman and politician. He served as mayor of Bogota, New Jersey, from 1995 to 2007. A member of the Republican Party, Lonegan was named the New Jersey State Chairman for the Ted Cruz ...

, he ran for a seat on the

Ocean County Ocean County is a county located along the Jersey Shore in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Its county seat is Toms River.Board of Chosen Freeholders In New Jersey, a Board of County Commissioners (until 2020 named the Board of Chosen Freeholders) is the elected county-wide government board in each of the state's 21 counties. In the five counties that have an elected county executive, the b ...

seeking to defeat long-time incumbent Freeholder Joseph H. Vicari. Vicari ultimately defeated Paolella nearly 76%–24%.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paolella, John B. 1949 births Living people Bergen Catholic High School alumni Harvard University alumni Seton Hall University School of Law alumni Politicians from Hackensack, New Jersey Politicians from Monmouth County, New Jersey People from Bay Head, New Jersey New Jersey lawyers Republican Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly Republican Party New Jersey state senators