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 Delaware ...
's 22nd Legislative District is one of 40 in 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 ...
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...
Clark
Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educate ...
Rahway
Rahway () is a city in southern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A bedroom community of New York City, it is centrally located in the Rahway Valley region, in the New York metropolitan area. The city is southwest of Manhattan ...
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 229,951, of whom 176,697 (76.8%) were of voting age. The racial makeup of the district was 91,410 (39.8%)
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 o ...
, 50,902 (22.1%)
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 ...
, 87 (0.0%)
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 45,390 (19.7%) from some other race, and 28,061 (12.2%) 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 78,068 (33.9%) of the population.
The 22nd District had 146,052 registered voters as of December 1, 2021, of whom 48,780 (33.4%) were registered as unaffiliated, 72,133 (49.4%) were registered as Democrats, 23,134 (15.8%) were registered as Republicans, and 2,005 (1.4%) were registered to other parties.
The district had the eighth-highest percentage of African American residents of all 40 districts statewide. The municipal tax rate was 11th highest and school taxes were 12th highest leading to one of the highest overall tax rates, after including rebates, which was the 7th highest in the state. Registered Democrats outnumbered Republicans by a 5-2 margin.
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 ...
is represented in the
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 ...
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 presb ...
Rahway
Rahway () is a city in southern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A bedroom community of New York City, it is centrally located in the Rahway Valley region, in the New York metropolitan area. The city is southwest of Manhattan ...
12th
12 (twelve) is the natural number following 11 and preceding 13. Twelve is a superior highly composite number, divisible by 2, 3, 4, and 6.
It is the number of years required for an orbital period of Jupiter. It is central to many systems ...
congressional districts.
Apportionment history
When the 40-district legislative map was created in 1973, the 22nd district had an unusual shape as it weaved its way through the parts of Union County not covered by the 20th, 21st, and 25th districts. The center of the 1973 district was Scotch Plains and included spurs to
Kenilworth
Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Warwick District in Warwickshire, England, south-west of Coventry, north of Warwick and north-west of London. It lies on Finham Brook, a tributary of the River Sowe, which joins the ...
, Chatham Township in Morris County via Berkeley Heights, Plainfield, and Rahway. Following the 1981 redistricting, the district became more straightforward with fewer prongs running from Winfield Township and comprising the remainder of western Union County (except Plainfield) and into western Essex County up to Caldwell with a spur to Maplewood. The 1991 district created in that year's redistricting became much more compact, comprising western Union County (again excluding Plainfield) but heading into Middlesex County's Dunellen, Morris County's Chatham Township and Passaic Township (renamed Long Hill Township in 1992) and Somerset County's Green Brook, North Plainfield, Warren Township, and Watchung.
Facing challenges from the Democrats, the team of Peter McDonough in the Senate and
Donald DiFrancesco
Donald Thomas DiFrancesco (born November 20, 1944) is a retired American politician who served as the 51st governor of New Jersey from 2001 to 2002. He succeeded Christine Todd Whitman after her resignation to become Administrator of the Enviro ...
and William J. Maguire in the Assembly won re-election in 1977. McDonough resigned from the Senate in 1979; DiFrancesco won the Senate seat in a special election in November 1979 while
Bob Franks
Robert Douglas Franks (September 21, 1951 – April 9, 2010) was an American Republican politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New Jersey.
Early life
Franks was born on September 21, 1951, in Hackensack, New Jersey, the son of Nor ...
and Maguire won election in the Assembly that year.
In redistricting following the 1990 United States Census, Maureen Ogden was switched to the 21st District, where she won election to the Assembly, and
Richard Bagger
Richard Hartvig Bagger (born March 27, 1960) is an American Republican Party politician from New Jersey, and former State Senator who later served as chief of staff to Governor Chris Christie.redistricting in 2001, based on the results of the
2000 United States Census
The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...
Garwood Garwood can refer to: People
* Doug Garwood, American golfer
* Edmund Johnston Garwood, British geologist
* Julie Garwood, author
* Kelton Garwood, American actor
* Richard Garwood, Air Marshall in the Royal Air Force
* Robert R. Garwood, prison ...
Thomas Kean Jr.
Thomas Howard Kean Jr. ( ; born September 5, 1968) is an American Republican Party (United States), Republican politician and the U.S. representative-elect from New Jersey's 7th congressional district. From 2001 until 2003, he was a New Jersey Ge ...
As of January 21, 2001, DiFrancesco became the 51st
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 ...
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
The administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is the head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and is thus responsible for enforcing the nation's Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, as well as numerous other environ ...
, with DiFrancesco simultaneously holding his post as Senate President. In the 2001 redistricting following the
2000 United States Census
The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...
, several of the suburban, Republican-leaning municipalities in the district were replaced by Linden, Plainfield and Rahway, which gave the district a distinct Democratic tilt. DiFrancesco retired from the Legislature, Bagger and Kean were relocated to the 21st District, and the three legislative seats under District 22 were taken by Democrats Joseph Suliga in the Senate and Jerry Green (who previously represented District 17) and
Linda Stender
Linda Stender (born July 25, 1951) is an American Democratic Party politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2002 to 2016, where she represented the 22nd legislative district. She ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the United ...
in the Assembly.
Suliga did not run for re-election in 2003 after a scandal involving his alleged drunken sexual harassment of a woman in
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.
. He dropped out and entered rehabilitation for alcoholism and was replaced on the ballot and in the Senate by fellow Linden Democrat Nicholas Scutari.
Due to a scandal involving her husband applying for help from
Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a US non-governmental, and nonprofit organization which was founded in 1976 by couple Millard and Linda Fuller. Habitat for Humanity is a Ch ...
to aid in rebuilding their house on the Jersey Shore, Stender did not run for re-election in 2015. Union County Democratic officials endorsed former Rahway Mayor James J. Kennedy over Fanwood Mayor Colleen Mahr as the successor; Green and Kennedy went on to win in the general election.
Scutari, Green, and Kennedy were all re-elected in 2017, although Green did not attend any of the following legislative session due to a long illness. He died on April 18, 2018. Democratic committee members in Middlesex, Somerset, and Union Counties selected Union County Freeholder Linda S. Carter as his replacement on May 19; she took her Assembly seat on May 24.