Joseph LeFante Archives - New Jersey Globe

The history of Albio Sires’ congressional district

December 21, 2021 11:16 am

The congressional seat that Rep. Albio Sires will vacate next year has been in Democratic hands since another West York congressman, freshman Republican Rep. Vincent Dellay, switched parties in late 1957. This will be the first open seat contest in...

James Dugan, former senator and Dem state chairman, dies at 92

December 12, 2021 3:28 pmDecember 12, 2021 7:16 pm

James P. Dugan, a former New Jersey Democratic State Chairman and state senator from Bayonne who was once among New Jersey’s most powerful political insiders, died on Sunday. He was 92 and had been in failing health. Dugan, who represented...

Flashback: New Jerseyans on Nixon resignation in 1974

August 9, 2020 8:21 pmAugust 9, 2020 8:26 pm

Richard M. Nixon resigned as President of the United States 46 years ago today, just as the U.S. House of Representatives was about to impeach him for his role in the Watergate scandal: “I have never been a quitter. To...

How Bob Menendez became a mayor

January 3, 2020 9:30 am

It’s a story that happens often in New Jersey politics, where cliques and factions sometimes create toxic environments within one party in control of local government. That was in the case in Galloway on Thursday night, where a Republican township...

Montclair State University professor Brigid Callahan Harrison is considering running against Jeff Van Drew.

Van Drew will face primary challenge if he votes against Trump impeachment; Brigid Harrison mulls House bid

November 25, 2019 9:22 pmNovember 27, 2019 12:04 pm

Freshman Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-Dennis) will almost certainly face a Democratic primary challenge if he votes against impeaching President Donald Trump and could lose contests for organization lines at county conventions early next year, six Democratic leaders told the...

William J. Hamilton, former Assembly Speaker, dies at 86

October 12, 2019 4:28 pmOctober 13, 2019 3:11 pm

Former Assembly Speaker William J. Hamilton, Jr., a skilled legislator with a reputation for integrity and independence, died on Thursday. He was 86. A product of John A. Lynch, Sr.’s New Brunswick political organization, Hamilton served six years in the...

Trailblazer: Speaker S. Howard Woodson

January 21, 2019 12:20 amJanuary 21, 2019 12:18 am

Rev. S. Howard Woodson (1916-1999) was the first African American to serve as Speaker of the New Jersey State Assembly. He held the post in 1974 and 1975. He was the first black to serve as a Speaker in any...