Tahesha Way (née Wright; born December 31, 1969) is an American

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, New Jersey's 34th Secretary of State, and a former member of the

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 b ...

as Freeholder Director in

Passaic County, New Jersey 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 ...

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Biography

Way grew up in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. She earned two degrees: one in English and American literature from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

, and the other in law from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

. She worked as a law clerk, a television producer for

Court TV Court TV is an American digital broadcast network and former cable television channel. It was originally launched in 1991 with a focus on crime-themed programs such as true crime documentary series, legal analysis talk shows, and live news cove ...

, and a literature professor at

Fairleigh Dickinson University Fairleigh Dickinson University is a private university with its main campuses in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Founded in 1942, Fairleigh Dickinson University currently offers more than 100 degree programs to its students. In addition to its tw ...

before her current position. She also worked as an attorney with a Totowa law firm. Way was admitted to the state bar in 1998. Way was defeated along with running mates Evangeline Gomez and Domenick Stampone in the 2009 election, where the Republicans gained three seats that were previously held by Democrats. In December 2017, Governor-elect

Phil Murphy Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957) is an American financier, diplomat, and politician serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey since January 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the United States ambassador to Germa ...

selected Way as the next

Secretary of State of New Jersey The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing artistic, cultural, and historical programs within the U.S. state of New Jersey, as we ...

. She was sworn in as New Jersey's 34th Secretary of State on February 26, 2018. She lives in Wayne with her husband, former New York Giants running back

Charles Way Charles Christopher Way (born December 27, 1972) is a former professional American football fullback in the National Football League for five seasons for the New York Giants. Early life Way was born in 1972 to Jacqueline and Cleveland Way. he ...

, and 4 children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Way, Tahesha 1969 births Living people 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians African-American people in New Jersey politics African-American state cabinet secretaries Brown University alumni County commissioners in New Jersey Fairleigh Dickinson University faculty New Jersey Democrats People from the Bronx People from Wayne, New Jersey Secretaries of State of New Jersey American women academics 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women