Egan passes Democratic Assembly nod on to his son

Democrats tonight ratified the selection of Kevin Egan as their new State Assembly candidate in the 17th district, allowing 85-year-old Joseph Egan (D-New Brunswick) to bequeath the seat he’s held for 22 years to his son and assure the minority-majority district of representation by three white men.

The younger Egan, 59, replaced his father on the New Brunswick City Council in 2010 and works for his father at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 456.

Joe Egan announced on July 13 that he had changed his mind and would not seek re-election to a twelfth term in the legislature.  By initially seeking re-election, Egan was able to easily pass the family seat on to his son without the encumbrance of a possible primary.  He will serve the remainder of his term and continue his post at the IBEW.

The 17th is heavily Democratic; no Republican has won the district, anchored by Democratic strongholds of New Brunswick and Piscataway, since New Jersey moved to a 40-district legislative map in 1973.  The district also includes North Brunswick, Franklin, and South Bound Brook.

The district is 29% white, 27% Hispanic, 19% Black, and 25% Asian.  If Kevin Egan wins, it will create a ticket comprised of three white men.

Egan will run with State Sen. Robert Smith (D-Piscataway) and Assemblyman Joe Danielson (D-Franklin).

The Assembly seat is widely viewed as a New Brunswick seat.   New Brunswick had a Senate seat from 1956 until 2002, when John A. Lynch, Jr. retired.  After Smith moved from the Assembly to the upper house, Egan ran for assemblyman.

Redistricting moved the other 17th district assemblymen, Jerry Green, to the 22nd in 2001 when his hometown of Plainfield was shifted to the newly-drawn 22nd.  The other Assembly seat went to Somerset County, and Upendra Chivukula (D-Franklin) was elected.

Lynch’s father was elected to the Senate in 1955 and retired in 1977; Assembly Speaker William Hamilton (D-New Brunswick) spent four years in the Senate before running for governor, and Lynch Jr. went to the Senate in 1981.  Both Lynch’s served as mayor of New Brunswick.

Egan’s former chief of staff, Mitchelle Drulis, is the Democratic nominee for State Assembly in the 16th district.  If she wins, she will not get to serve alongside her longtime mentior

Egan’s retirement will also open up the chairmanship of the Assembly Labor Committee, where he is the longest-serving chairman in state history.  He is the vice president of the New Jersey Building and Construction Trades Union.

Danielson and Egan’s replacement will face Republicans Susan Hucko and Dhimant Patel.