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 26th Legislative District is one of 40 in the New Jersey Legislature. As of the 2011 apportionment, the district includes the Essex County communities of Fairfield Township, North Caldwell,

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

and West Caldwell; the Morris County municipalities of Butler, Jefferson Township, Kinnelon, Lincoln Park, Montville, Morris Plains, Parsippany-Troy Hills and Rockaway Township; along with the Passaic County community of West Milford.

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 224,584, of whom 179,363 (79.9%) were of voting age. The racial makeup of the district was 159,789 (71.1%)

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 ...

, 5,396 (2.4%)

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 ...

, 494 (0.2%) Native American, 33,908 (15.1%) Asian, 49 (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 ...

, 7,733 (3.4%) from some other race, and 17,215 (7.7%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties forme ...

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 23,197 (10.3%) of the population. The 26th District had 178,510 registered voters as of December 1, 2021, of whom 65,311 (36.6%) were registered as unaffiliated, 61,674 (34.5%) were registered as Republicans, 49,748 (27.9%) were registered as Democrats, and 1,777 (1.0%) were registered to other parties. The Asian population was above the state average, while there were relatively few African American and Hispanic residents in the district. The 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 A ...

was the fourth lowest of any district and the percentage of the population age 65 and over was eighth highest. The district had one of the lowest percentages in the state of registered Democrats, with Republicans outnumbering Democrats by a more than 2–1 margin.

Political representation

For the 2022–2023 session, the district 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 ...

Joseph Pennacchio Joseph Pennacchio (born May 27, 1955) is an American Republican Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey Senate since January 8, 2008, where he represents the 26th Legislative District. Pennacchio has served in the Senate as the De ...

( R, Rockaway Township) 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 presb ...

by Christian Barranco (R, Jefferson Township) and Jay Webber (R, Morris Plains). The legislative district is almost entirely located within

New Jersey's 11th congressional district New Jersey's 11th congressional district is a suburban district in northern New Jersey. The district includes portions of Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties; it is centered in Morris County. The 11th congressional district, along with the 12 ...

, with the exception of West Milford, which is in the 5th district.

District composition since 1973

The 26th District when it was created in 1973 along with the 40-district legislative map was based in the urban area around

The Oranges The Oranges are a group of four municipalities in Essex County, New Jersey, all of which have the word ''Orange'' in their name. The four municipalities are Orange, East Orange, South Orange and West Orange. All of these communities were n ...

, specifically West Orange,

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

East Orange East Orange is a city in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was the state's 20th most-populous municipality in 2010, after having been the state's 14th most-po ...

, and a small sliver of the North Ward of Newark. In the 1981 redistricting, the district moved out of Essex County and was routed along the eastern border of Morris County from Chatham Township to Kinnelon including Parsippany-Troy Hills and Morris Plains and northern Passaic County's West Milford and Ringwood. Following the 1991 redistricting, Chatham Township was removed but Madison and

Mountain Lakes A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

were added in Morris County; in Passaic County, however, West Milford and Ringwood were shifted to the 40th District, Bloomingdale and Pompton Lakes instead made up the Passaic portion of the district during this decade. West Caldwell, Caldwell, and Fairfield Township in Essex Count were now included within the district. Changes to the district made in the 2001 legislative apportionment 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 cen ...

added Hanover Township (from the

District 25 A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

) and West Milford Township (from District 40) and removed Madison Borough (to the District 21), Mountain Lakes (to District 25) and Fairfield Township and West Caldwell Township (to District 27). Changes to the district made as part of the 2011 apportionment include the addition of Fairfield Township (from

District 27 A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

), Jefferson Township (from District 25), North Caldwell Borough (from District 27), Rockaway Township (from District 25), Verona Township (from District 40) and West Caldwell Township (from District 27). The 2011 apportionment removed Bloomingdale (to District 39), Chatham Borough (to District 21), East Hanover,

Florham Park Florham Park is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 11,696,Pequannock Township Pequannock Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 15,420, reflecting an increase of 1,652 (+11.9%) from the 13,888 counted in the 2000 Census, whi ...

, Pompton Lakes Borough, and Riverdale (to District 40), In the 1977 Democratic primary for the Senate seat, incumbent Frank J. Dodd faced opposition from Assemblyman

Eldridge Hawkins Eldridge Hawkins (born September 4, 1940) is an American lawyer and Democratic Party politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1972 to 1978. During that time he served as the Chairman of The NJ State General Assembly Judiciary ...

and tennis star

Althea Gibson Althea Neale Gibson (August 25, 1927September 28, 2003) was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first African American ...

, who was serving as state Athletic Commissioner. Dodd was supported by the Essex County Democratic organization under County Chairman Harry Lerner. With Gibson and Hawkins splitting the anti-organization vote, Dodd won the nomination and the subsequent general election. In 1983, Leanna Brown challenged her former running-mate, James P. Vreeland, for the Republican nomination for State Senate in the Republican primary in what the '' Philadelphia Daily News'' described as a "stunning upset" and was elected to the State Senate, becoming the first woman from the Republican Party to serve in the upper house of the State Legislature. In 1993, Brown resigned from the Senate after she was appointed to the

New Jersey Casino Control Commission The Casino Control Commission is a New Jersey state governmental agency that was founded in 1977 as the state's Gaming Control Board, responsible under the Casino Control Act for licensing casinos in Atlantic City. The commission also issues lic ...

, initially to serve out the unexpired term of Charles J. Irwin. Assemblymember Robert Martin was chosen to fill Brown's vacancy in the Senate. In December 1988

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 ...

Thomas Kean Thomas Howard Kean ( ; born April 21, 1935) is an American businessman, academic administrator and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Kean served as the 48th governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990. Following his tenure as governor, ...

nominated

Ralph A. Loveys Ralph A. Loveys (April 25, 1929 – February 22, 2017) was an American Republican Party politician who was elected to three terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 26th Legislative District. In 1988, Loveys was nomina ...

to succeed Joseph A. Sullivan as the chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority In January 1989, Alex DeCroce, a member of the Morris County

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 ...

, was named to fill Loveys' vacant seat in the General Assembly.

Carol J. Murphy Carol J. Murphy (December 25, 1932 – December 14, 2011) was an American Republican Party politician who served four full terms in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1993 to 2002, where she represented the 26th Legislative District. A gr ...

was nominated in February 2001 to serve on the

New Jersey Board of Public Utilities The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) is a regulatory authority in New Jersey "with authority to oversee the regulated utilities, which in turn provide critical services such as natural gas, electricity, water, telecommunications and ca ...

by Acting

Donald DiFrancesco. In February 2001, a special convention of district Republicans chose

to fill the General Assembly seat vacated by Murphy. Alex DeCroce died on January 9, 2012, after collapsing in a bathroom inside the Statehouse, just moments after the 214th Legislature held its final voting session. On January 25, 2012, his widow, BettyLou DeCroce, was selected by the Morris County Republican Committee to replace him in the Assembly until a November 2012 special election was held. She won the special election and subsequent general elections running with Jay Webber. On June 8th 2021, DeCroce lost her reelection bid to former Pompton Lakes councilman Christian Barranco.

Election history

Election results

Senate

General Assembly

References

{{NewJerseyLegislatureDistricts Essex County, New Jersey Morris County, New Jersey Passaic County, New Jersey 26