New Jersey's 39th Legislative District is one of 40 in the state, including portions of
Bergen County
Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Passaic County
Passaic County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the population of Passaic County was enumerated at 524,118, an increase of 22,892 (4.6%) from t ...
Haworth
Haworth () is a village in the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, in the Pennines, south-west of Keighley, west of Bradford and east of Colne in Lancashire. The surrounding areas include Oakworth and Oxenhope. Nearby villages includ ...
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
Ramsey
Ramsey may refer to:
Geography British Isles
* Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, a small market town in England
* Ramsey, Essex, a village near Harwich, England
** Ramsey and Parkeston, a civil parish formerly called just "Ramsey"
* Ramsey, Isle of Man, t ...
,
River Vale
River Vale is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. River Vale is the easternmost municipality in an area of the county referred to as the Pascack Valley. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 9,6 ...
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 ...
. Accessed October 28, 2011. As of the
2020 United States census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, the district had a population of 217,994.
Demographic characteristics
As of the
2020 United States census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, the district had a population of 217,994, of whom 172,439 (79.1%) were of voting age. The racial makeup of the district was 162,440 (74.5%)
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 4,051 (1.9%)
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 31 (0.0%)
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 7,565 (3.5%) from some other race, and 16,753 (7.7%) from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 22,937 (10.5%) of the population.
The district had 180,183 registered voters as of December 1, 2021, of whom 72,087 (40.0%) were registered as unaffiliated, 54,143 (30.0%) were registered as Democrats, 52,510 (29.1%) were registered as Republicans, and 1,443 (0.8%) were registered to other parties.
The district, which covers most of Northern Bergen County, has the smallest African-American population of any district in the state and ranks 31st in the number of Hispanic residents, while it has the ninth highest percentage of Asian residents. At 0.3% it has the lowest percentage of children receiving
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF ) is a federal assistance program of the United States. It began on July 1, 1997, and succeeded the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program, providing cash assistance to indigent Ame ...
aid, just over 5% of the state average. The district ranked second-highest in both equalized property value and personal income on a per capita basis.
State Senate
A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...
River Vale
River Vale is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. River Vale is the easternmost municipality in an area of the county referred to as the Pascack Valley. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 9,6 ...
) and in the
General Assembly
A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company.
Specific examples of general assembly include:
Churches
* General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
Throughout most of the district's history since 1973, the year the 40-district legislative map was created in New Jersey, the 39th District has encompassed the small affluent boroughs and townships in northeast Bergen County. In the redistrictings of 1981 and 1991, only a few municipalities were added and removed to get the district's population close to one fortieth of the state's population as required under the
Reynolds v. Sims
''Reynolds v. Sims'', 377 U.S. 533 (1964), was a landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court ruled that the electoral districts of state legislative chambers must be roughly equal in population. Along with ''Baker v. Carr'' (196 ...
Englewood Cliffs
Englewood Cliffs is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, whose population at the 2010 United States census was 5,281.Tenafly
Tenafly () is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the borough had a population of 15,409,37th Legislative District added Oradell (from the 38th Legislative District) and Waldwick and Washington Township (from the 40th Legislative District).
With Democrat
Brendan Byrne
Brendan Thomas Byrne (April 1, 1924 – January 4, 2018) was an American politician, statesman, and prosecutor, serving as the 47th governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982.
A member of the Democratic Party, Byrne started his career as a privat ...
at the top of the ticket winning the race for
Governor of New Jersey
The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...
,
Frank Herbert
Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. (October 8, 1920February 11, 1986) was an American science fiction author best known for the 1965 novel '' Dune'' and its five sequels. Though he became famous for his novels, he also wrote short stories and worked a ...
won the 1977 race for Senate in the 39th District, standing together with his running mates in support of the establishment of a
state income tax
In addition to federal income tax collected by the United States, most individual U.S. states collect a state income tax. Some local governments also impose an income tax, often based on state income tax calculations. Forty-two states and many ...
to defeat Republican John Markert.
In the 1979 election,
Gerald Cardinale
Gerald Cardinale (February 27, 1934 – February 20, 2021) was an American Republican Party politician, who served in the New Jersey State Senate from 1982 until his death in 2021, representing the 39th Legislative District. He also served one ...
and Markert defeated incumbent Democrat Greta Kiernan, who had herself defeated Markert two years earlier.
Cardinale knocked off the incumbent State Senator Frank Herbert in 1981 and Herbert fell short again running against Cardinale in 1983, losing by about 1,000 votes.
Citing recent hip replacement surgery as a factor, John E. Rooney announce in March 2009 that he would not seek another term of office and would retire after 26 years in the legislature. He endorsed Bob Schroeder, a Washington Township councilmember, who won election to succeed him.Bautista, Justo "Assemblyman won't see re-election" ''
The Record (Bergen County)
''The Record'' (also called ''The North Jersey Record'', ''The Bergen Record'', ''The Sunday Record'' (Sunday edition) and formerly ''The Bergen Evening Record'') is a newspaper in New Jersey, United States. Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson and P ...
'', March 4, 2009. Accessed October 24, 2010. After Charlotte Vandervalk decided not to run for re-election in 2011, Holly Schepisi ran in her place and won together with the other Republican incumbents.
Changes to the district made as part of the New Jersey Legislative apportionment in 2011 removed several Bergen County municipalities and added portions of Passaic County and northwest Bergen County.