Nicholas J. Sacco (born November 17, 1946) is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

State Senate since 1994, where he represents the 32nd Legislative District. Sacco serves in the Senate as the

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the group ...

of the Transportation Committee, and is also a member of the Law and Public Safety and Veterans' Affairs Committee. He concurrently serves as mayor of

North Bergen North Bergen is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 63,361. The township was founded in 1843. It was much diminished in territory by ...

as he is allowed to hold two offices under a grandfather clause in a bill that prohibited dual office holding. Sacco announced on February 24, 2022 that he would not seek re-election for state senate.

Personal life

Sacco was born in

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.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 ...

graduating from Memorial High School. Sacco received a B.A. in 1968 in History from

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

and an M.A. in Administration and Supervision from

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesa ...

in 1973. He is married to but does not reside with, the former Kathleen Ambrose since 1972 and together have one son, Nicholas J. Sacco, Jr., a vice-principal at

North Bergen High School North Bergen High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school, serving students in ninth through twelfth grade from North Bergen, in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the North Bergen School District. T ...

Political career

Sacco was first elected to the North Bergen Board of Commissioners in 1985 as a part of recall elections headed up by Leo Gattoni to clean out corrupt officials in the Township. In 1991, Gattoni retired from the Mayor's office and decided to endorse Sacco as mayor (in North Bergen, the mayor is chosen among members of the Board of Commissioners). Sacco has been reelected every four years, most recently in May 2015. Two years after becoming mayor, Sacco defeated

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-ele ...

State Senator Thomas F. Cowan in the Democratic primary election for the 32nd district. He has also been overwhelmingly re-elected to this office since his first election as well. In addition to serving as a State Senator and as mayor of North Bergen, Sacco previously served as the Director of Primary Education for the

North Bergen School District The North Bergen School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from North Bergen, in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2018–19 school year ...

, until his retirement from the position in 2017. Sacco has been Principal of Horace Mann and Lincoln School in North Bergen, and former president and vice president of the North Bergen Council of Administrators and Supervisors which is affiliated with the New Jersey Education Association. He simultaneously holds a seat in the New Jersey Senate and as Mayor. This dual position, often called

double dipping A dual mandate is the practice in which elected officials serve in more than one elected or other public position simultaneously. This practice is sometimes known as double jobbing in Britain and ''cumul des mandats'' in France; not to be confused ...

, is allowed under a grandfather clause in the state law enacted by 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 ...

and signed into law by

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 r ...

Jon Corzine in September 2007 that prevents dual-office-holding but allows those who had held both positions as of February 1, 2008, to retain both posts. Sacco is a sponsor of the state's Urban Enterprise Zone legislation, which has helped foster private business investment in urban centers and generates millions of dollars in revenue for North Bergen and other cities. Sacco has also sponsored legislation expanding the use of

DNA testing Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, ...

in criminal cases, by having DNA collected from individuals convicted of disorderly conduct offenses that could be compared against databases to help close unsolved crime cases. Sacco has an

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respo ...

voting record in the Senate as reported by the

Democrats for Life of America Democrats for Life of America (DFLA) is a 501(c)(4) American political advocacy nonprofit organization that seeks to elect anti-abortion Democrats and to encourage the Democratic Party to oppose euthanasia, capital punishment, and abortion. DF ...

. In 2012 the '' Hudson Reporter'' named him #1 in its list of Hudson County's 50 most influential people. In 2013 and 2014, he was ranked #3 (the first of which tied him with Senate colleague and Union City mayor Brian P. Stack), and #4 in 2015. On February 24, 2022, Sacco announced that he would not run for re-election as state senator in 2023, after North Bergen was redistricted to the 33rd Legislative District, which placed Sacco in the same district as his colleague, Union City Mayor and state Senator Brian P. Stack, whom Sacco said he would support.

Committees

Committee assignments for the current session are:Senator Nicholas J. Sacco

. Accessed February 22, 2022. *Law and Public Safety, Vice-Chair *Transportation

District 32

Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative 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, ...

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 ...

.Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the

and two members in the

. Representatives from the 32nd District for the 2022—2023 Legislative Session are:Legislative Roster for District 32

. Accessed January 11, 2022. *Senator Nicholas Sacco *Assemblyman Pedro Mejia *Assemblywoman Angelica M. Jimenez

Election history

References

External links

Senator Sacco's legislative web page

*''New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure forms''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sacco, Nicholas 1946 births Living people Mayors of places in New Jersey Memorial High School (West New York, New Jersey) alumni Democratic Party New Jersey state senators People from Jersey City, New Jersey People from North Bergen, New Jersey People from West New York, New Jersey Rutgers University alumni Seton Hall University alumni 21st-century American politicians