Wayne Dumont, Jr. (June 25, 1914 – March 19, 1992) was 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 Party ...

politician from

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 ...

. He represented Warren County 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, ...

from 1952 to 1966 and northwestern New Jersey more broadly from 1968 until his retirement in 1990. He was the Republican nominee 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 r ...

in 1965, losing to

Richard J. Hughes Richard Joseph Hughes (August 10, 1909December 7, 1992) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. A Democrat, he served as the 45th governor of New Jersey from 1962 to 1970, and as Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1973 to ...

Early life and education

Wayne Dumont Jr. was born on June 25, 1914 in

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Phillipsburg, New Jersey Phillipsburg is a town located along the Delaware River in Warren County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located across the river directly east from Easton, Pennsylvania. Phillipsburg is the most populous municipality in Warren County ...

and prominent attorney and bank director in Paterson."WAYNE DUMONT, LAWYER, DIES AT 58; Succumbs to Heart Disease at Home in Little Falls, N. J., After Long Illness. ON SEVERAL BANKS' BOARDS Was President of the High Point Park Commission and a Member of Many Clubs."
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', April 8, 1929. Accessed July 11, 2008. Wayne Jr. graduated from Montclair Academy. While he was attending Montclair, his father died of heart disease. Wayne Jr. then attended

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...

, his father's alma mater, in

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river that joins the Delaware Ri ...

. After graduating, he became a minor league pitcher for the former St. Louis Browns but decided to study law at the

University of Pennsylvania Law School The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Law or Penn Carey Law) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is among the most selective and oldes ...

. After receiving his law degree, he moved to Phillipsburg in 1940, where he began practicing law. Dumont served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and assisted in the prosecution of Japanese war criminals.

New Jersey Senate

Dumont was elected in 1951 as a Republican to represent Warren County in the

; he was the first Republican to represent the county in nearly 75 years. He was re-elected in 1955, 1959 and 1963, during which time he served as Senate Majority Leader, Senate President and Acting

. He was responsible for sponsoring well over 500 bills during his legislative career including the state's first school aid bill and farmland preservation law.

Gubernatorial campaigns

Dumont ran for Governor of New Jersey three times in 1957, 1961, and 1965. He narrowly won the Republican nomination in 1965 against fellow State Senator Charles W. Sandman. Dumont's support of a state sales tax was an issue in the primary campaign, possibly attributing to the narrow margin. In the general election against incumbent

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, Dumont lost in a landslide. He made a campaign issue out of the pro-

Marxist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...

speeches of

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 ...

professor Eugene D. Genovese. Dumont returned to the State Senate in 1967. In 1976, he was the only Republican to support Governor

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 (United States), Democratic Party, By ...

's call for a state income tax. Despite his opponents focus on the income tax, he was re-elected in 1977.Narvaez, Alfonso
"Easy Triumph by Governor Helps Democrats Keep Trenton Control"
''

'', November 9, 1977. Accessed August 18, 2008. In 1988, he suffered a stroke, leading him to retire in 1990, before the end of his term.

Personal life

Dumont married Helen S. Williamson on September 19, 1938. Their son W. Hunt Dumont served as

United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey The U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey is the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Jersey. On December 16, 2021, Philip R. Sellinger was sworn in as U.S. Attorney. The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has juris ...

from 1981 to 1985. From 1954 to 1960 he served as a member of the board of trustees to his alma mater, Lafayette College.

Death and legacy

Dumont died at the age of 77 on March 19, 1992, due to

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

suffered at Warren Hospital in

Phillipsburg, New Jersey Phillipsburg is a town located along the Delaware River in Warren County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located across the river directly east from Easton, Pennsylvania. Phillipsburg is the most populous municipality in Warren County ...

. Governor

James Florio James Joseph Florio (August 29, 1937 – September 25, 2022) was an American politician who served as the 49th governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994. He was previously the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district from 1 ...

ordered all flags in the state flown at half mast. The Warren County Administration Building in

Belvidere, New Jersey Belvidere is a town in Warren County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the town's population was 2,681,Executive order memorializing Wayne Dumont
Governor

James J. Florio James Joseph Florio (August 29, 1937 – September 25, 2022) was an American politician who served as the 49th governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994. He was previously the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district from 1 ...

, March 20, 1992
Administrative History of the Teach-ins at Rutgers University
Special Collections and University Archives,

Libraries, April 27, 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Dumont, Wayne Jr. 1914 births 1992 deaths Lafayette College alumni Montclair Kimberley Academy alumni Republican Party New Jersey state senators Politicians from Paterson, New Jersey People from Phillipsburg, New Jersey Presidents of the New Jersey Senate University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni 20th-century American politicians Lafayette College trustees 20th-century American academics