Democrats in the running for Handlin’s Assembly seat

Josh Welle and Amber Gesslein could run for the Dem nominations for Assembly in LD 13 next year.

Assemblywoman Amy Handlin’s announcement that she will not seek reelection next year inevitably creates speculation on who will run to replace her. While party leaders on both sides of the aisle would rather their troops stay focused on the election coming up next month, the jockeying has started given how infrequently a vacancy occurs in the 13th district.

Democrats, who normally lose badly in the district will likely have a contest for the two Assembly nominations next year, given Handlin’s vacancy and Serena DiMaso serving her freshman term.  DiMaso put something of a target on her back with the Dems when she made a robocall criticizing LD 11 Assemblymembers Eric Hougtaling and Joann Downey for voting for Governor Murphy’s tax increases.  Houghtaling and Downey responded to DiMaso’s robocall with an ethics complaint.

With the Assembly on top of the ballot next year, Dems will likely be motivated and funded, even in LD 13.

Potential Democrat Candidates for LD 13 Assembly in 2019 who are running for other offices this year:

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O’Scanlon praises Supreme Court’s proposed Municipal Court Reforms—will introduce legislation to take the profit out of policing and local courts

Senator Declan O’Scanlon

Senator Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth County) today issued praise to the Supreme Court Committee on Municipal Court Operations, Fines and Fees for their comprehensive report which, after a 16 month investigation, “revealed a number of significant concerns where aggressive reform is needed. Many of those issues identified by the Committee undermine both the administration of justice and the independence of the Municipal Courts.”

“In law enforcement and judicial systems, profit is the mortal enemy of justice,” Senator O’Scanlon said. “We must take real steps towards reforming municipal court and ticketing procedures. Policing for profit is an unacceptable practice that tarnishes the reputation of all our upstanding police officers and often results in devastating consequences for petty infractions.”

“Municipal Courts should be about the administration of justice, not a profit center to plug holes in local governments’ budgets,” O’Scanlon continued.   “In the twenty-five years since our Courts were last reformed, too many towns have come to rely on fines to fund their municipal operations and too many local judges have turned into de facto tax collectors.  This is not justice and it has to stop.”

Among the reforms that O’Scanlon will propose in legislation are: Read the rest of this entry »

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DiMaso proposes school safety legislation

Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso

Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso (R-Monmouth), along with her colleagues Assemblywomen Nancy Munoz (R-Union) and Holly Schepisi (R-Bergen), today called on the legislature to take action on a 10 bill package they introduced last week to address school safety in light of the recent shooting in Parkland, Florida and other tragic incidents.

The proposed legislation is based on recommendations from two panels of experts that were set-up in the wake of the 2012 school shooting in Newtown, Conn, DiMaso and Munoz said in a joint statement.   The groups included government officials, education leaders, law enforcement, community members, school officials, teachers and parents. Read the rest of this entry »

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O’Scanlon, in final action in the Assembly, makes push for arbitration cap (Video)

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LD 13 Senate Race Has Gone to the Dogs

The race between Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon and Democrat Sean Byrnes, a former one term Middletown Township Committeeman, to succeed Senator Joe Kyillos, has gone to the dogs. Read the rest of this entry »

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History Repeats For Sean Byrnes

Who will govern women?

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Mothers Against Drunk Driving Name O’Scanlon Legislator of the Year

Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) has named Assembly O’Scanlon it’s 2017 Legislator of the Year.

In recognition of your tireless efforts to advance the mission of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) in 2017, we are pleased to announce that we are honoring you as a 2017 MADD Legislator of the Year.

We thank you for your unwavering leadership in authoring DWI reform ignition interlock legislation in A 4016.

MADD commends you for your dedication and leadership in advancing MADD’s mission.  Thank you for your work in saving lives and in being a strong advocate for victims of impaired driving. Please do not hesitate to contact MADD with any questions. 

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Democrats in the 13th District: Vote for Joshua Leinsdorf for Senate in the Primary

By Art Gallagher

Over the Memorial Day weekend I noticed that Sean Byrnes, the establishment candidate for State Senate in the 13th District Democratic Primary, has put up lawn signs to get people to vote for him on Tuesday, June 6.   Byrnes is being challenged for the nomination to compete with Republican Declan O’Scanlon in November by Joshua Leinsdorf of Atlantic Highlands.   The winner of the LD 13 Senate election will replace Senator Joe Kyrillos in the Senate.

Given that Byrnes is taking the primary challenge from Leinsdorf seriously, I thought I should too.  I invited Mr. Leinsdorf to sit with me for an interview.  He surprised me. I thought Leinsdorf was an attention seeking gadfly perennial candidate.  I found him to be a sincere, smart and thoughtful man who has common sense ideas on how to solve New Jersey’s many fiscal problems.  Win or lose, he wants to influence public policy. He claims that even his losing campaigns have made a difference.

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Dems will have a primary race for Senate in LD 13

Joshua Leinsdorf and Sean Byrnes will compete in the Democratic Primary for State Senate in LD 13

Joshua Leinsdorf of Atlantic Highlands has filed as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for State Senate from the 13th legislative district.

The former Princeton Board of Education member ran for Assembly as an Independent in 2015 and for Governor as a third party candidate in 2009. As a gubernatorial candidate, Leinsdorf called for cutting taxes, fixing the schools, making public transportation usable and the elimination of county government.

Leinsdorf is the first candidate in the 13th district to file petitions with the Secretary of State’s Division of Elections.  His petition contains 170 signatures. 100 are required. Petitions are due in Trenton on Monday April 3 at 4p.m.

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GOP Leaders Weigh In On LD 13 Slate

Monmouth County and New Jersey Republican Leaders congratulated the GOP legislative team of Declan O’Scanlon, Amy Handlin and Serena DiMaso in the 13th district today.

Senator Joe Kyrillos, who created the game of dominoes that has that has had Republican office holders dancing on the district and county levesl when he announced his retirement in October, said, “Looks like things are working out very well for my friend Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon to fill my seat next year and I’m proud of him. He’s been a great assemblyman, and together with Amy and Serena, will contribute to the long tradition of Monmouth county’s especially strong legislative delegations to the State House.”

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