Joseph LeFante Archives - New Jersey Globe

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...

How Burstein got screwed out of being Assembly Speaker and Congressman

December 28, 2018 12:22 pmDecember 28, 2018 8:21 pm

Albert Burstein, who died yesterday at age 96, was part of one of a great legislative leadership battle in the 1970s and a legendary Hudson County political deal that upset his chances to win a seat in Congress. Burstein was...

Bayonne legend Neil Carroll dies

December 15, 2018 3:55 pmDecember 17, 2018 9:35 am

Neil Carroll, a former Hudson County freeholder and a legend in local politics in Bayonne and across North Jersey, passed away today. He was 91. Carroll served as chief of staff to four U.S. Congressmen. He started out working for...

A summer tax debate led to legendary one-liner

July 1, 2018 1:07 pmJuly 2, 2018 9:29 am

During the summer of 1976, the New Jersey State Assembly was holding a late-night session to debate the creation of a state income tax. Even at that hour, the Assembly chamber was uncomfortably hot after temperatures reached over 100 degrees...

Once allies, Stack and Sires at opposite sides of warette

March 31, 2018 10:40 pmApril 2, 2018 8:56 am

When Brian Stack was a 25-year-old political operative in 1991, he managed Albio Sires’ campaign for Mayor of West New York against five-term incumbent Anthony DeFino. Sires was a political outsider in those days – he lost races for Congress...