With three legislators leaving, the jockeying for seats and leadership begins

The departure of three state legislators in January will send a ripple of musical-chair effects through Trenton as Democratic leaders decide who will fill their seats and take over coveted committee slots. 

State Sen. Nellie Pou (D-North Haledon), Assemblyman Herb Conaway Jr. (D-Delran), and Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (D-Cherry Hill) each won election to other offices last month. The former pair won races for the U.S. House and must resign by Jan. 3, while Lampitt will assume Camden County’s clerkship and must resign by Jan. 1.

Once the trio resigns (and they can resign any time they wish), county Democratic committeemembers from their respective districts must hold a special election convention between 7 and 35 days after the vacancy takes effect. The winner of these special conventions will serve through the end of 2025 as a June primary and November general election determines who will hold the seat on a more permanent basis.

With a collective 57 years of state legislature experience between the three of them, they have big shoes to fill — and lots of people willing to fill them.

Obviously, there are the seats themselves. The fight for Pou’s Senate seat could be fierce, and may ultimately result in one or both Assembly seats becoming open as well. But beyond that, each lawmaker serves in roles that are the envy of other lawmakers, including Pou’s Judiciary Committee seat, Conaway’s Health Committee chairmanship, and Lampitt’s Education Committee chairwomanship.

Election Day wasn’t the end of politicking for this cycle — quite the opposite. Here’s what’s at stake in Trenton over the next few months.

The replacers

County Democratic committee members in three districts will host a special election convention at some point over the next couple of months, dependent on when vacancies take effect.

The Democratic county committee members from Pou’s 35th district (Passaic and Bergen), Lampitt’s 6th district (Camden and Burlington), and Conaway’s 7th district (Burlington) may take different routes.

In the 7th district, Burlington County Democrats have signaled they want to appoint a caretaker to succeed Conaway. The selection of a caretaker, probably outgoing County Commissioner Daniel O’Connell, would allow voters to pick the legislator’s replacement in a county line-free primary come June, creating an open seat in the solidly Democratic district. (Burlington County Commissioner Balvir Singh isn’t abiding by those wishes and is running in the special convention, however.)

In the 6th district, Camden County Commissioner Melinda Kane is thought to be the frontrunner to replace Lampitt. South Jersey Democratic leaders have been quieter about plans regarding the 6th district, perhaps because Kane — a teacher and Gold Star mother — is the favorite, and perhaps because Camden County Democrats don’t typically conduct their deliberations on such matters publicly.

The race to succeed Pou in the 35th district’s Senate seat could be a battle that heats up quickly. Assemblywoman Shavonda Sumter (D-North Haledon) and Assemblyman Benjie Wimberly (D-Paterson), who have long been Pou’s running mates and who both briefly ran for the same congressional seat that Pou won this year, are thought to be in contention. Paterson Mayor André Sayegh has said he doesn’t want the state Senate seat and that he’s heard from a “few Assembly people” who are interested — though he hasn’t announced his support for anyone.

Assuming Sumter and Wimberly run, the winner of the oncoming special convention would be the likely favorite for the June special primary. The loser of the special convention might opt to just run for re-election to the Assembly next year — unless they believe they can win the Senate seat in the county-line free primary.

A Sumter or Wimberly victory would continue the game of musical chairs: Once they resign from the Assembly to join the Senate, the clock for another special election convention to fill their Assembly seat starts ticking down.

Committees and leadership and chairmanships, oh my! 

The politicking will not stop with the selection of the replacements, since all three legislators hold leadership roles that will have to be filled by Senate President Nick Scutari and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, who control committee and leadership assignments.

Pou possesses a strong resume in the upper chamber: She’s the majority caucus chair, putting her in the upper echelons of Democratic leadership.

The senator is also the chair of the Commerce Committee, opening up a coveted chairmanship. State Sen. Joe Cryan, the vice chair, already heads the Higher Education Committee. (Senators can only chair one committee; notably, Cryan’s district encompasses Kean University.) If Cryan or anyone anyone trades in their chairmanship to take the helm of the Commerce Committee, that once again opens up a chairmanship. It’ll be on Scutari to sort out who gets what as each slot fills up.

Also of note: Pou holds a highly sought-after seat on the Judiciary Committee, and many Democrats will be hoping their name comes up in Judiciary discussions. (Legislators serving unexpired terms often take over their predecessor’s assignments to minimize the amount of logistical pain — but that may not happen with a seat as coveted as the Judiciary Committee.)

Pou has additionally been chair of the state’s Legislative Latino Caucus since 2006, so it’ll be up to the group to decide who their next leader will be after two decades of Pou stewardship.

Moving on to the Assembly: Both Lampitt and Conaway hold the title of deputy speaker, which is largely honorific. Coughlin could choose two new Assemblymembers to serve as deputy speaker, but he still has six deputy speakers even after the pair leave.

However, two seats that must be filled are the top spots on the Education and Health Committees, both of which are relatively prominent and influential committees.

There are a few options to succeed Lampitt on the Education Committee. The first is her vice chair, Assemblyman Sterley Stanley. But he’s currently chair of the Regulated Professions Committee and would have to give that up. Once again, this leads to a potential waterfall of moves: Would Assemblywoman Shanique Speight give up the chair of the Aging and Human Services Committee to take over Regulated Professions? Several rounds of hypothetical musical chairs can be played.

Would Coughlin allow for any of this?

If not Stanley, three first-term Democrats serve on the Education Committee — but first-term members typically don’t receive the gavel of standing committees. Coughlin could instead turn to Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, one of the few non-freshman Democrats who doesn’t chair a committee or hold a high-ranking leadership role.

As for Conaway’s Health Committee, the current vice chair is Lampitt. There goes that backup plan.

Conaway also holds a coveted seat on the Budget Committee, one of the Assembly’s most powerful panels. Lampitt, for her part, serves on the slightly less powerful Appropriations Committee.

The maneuvering could become even more complicated if Wimberly or Sumter leave the Assembly to succeed Pou. Wimberly, the speaker pro tempore, serves on the Budget, Higher Education, and Housing committees. Sumter serves on three panels, including as chair of the Community Development and Women’s Affairs Committee.

It’s too early to tell what it will all look like once the fog clears.