John Girgenti
Encyclopedia
John A. Girgenti is an American Democratic Party
politician
, who has been serving in the New Jersey
Senate
from 1990, where he represents the 35th Legislative District.
Senator John A. Girgenti was the Majority Whip, a post he held from 2004 to 2007. He is currently the Assistant Majority Leader in the Senate and serves as the Chair of the Law and Public Safety Committee, Vice-Chair of the Judiciary Committee, and on the Transportation Committee.
Senator Girgenti has sponsored many important pieces of legislation that have become law, including a measure that requires a life sentence of community supervision for certain convicted sexual offenders who have completed their prison terms, and legislation that mandates and provides funding for sprinkler installation in New Jersey college dorms, following the Seton Hall University
dormitory fire
in 2000. He has also championed the law criminalizing the desecration of human remains, helping families preserve the dignity and respect of their deceased loved ones and has worked to keep criminals from profiting off of the sales of 'murderabilia.' He has also been opposed to the sale of realistic or replica toy guns to children and was a prime sponsor of the law mandating child-proof firearms or 'Smart Gun
s' be sold in the State.
Girgenti was one of the first Senators to call for enhanced fingerprinting requirements for state employees involved with domestic security, following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and has proposed legislation to update and modernize New Jersey's background check laws so that towns and communities can identify potential threats and prevent them from obtaining jobs where they could harm residents.
The Senator has also fought to create the State Public Safety Interoperable Communications Coordinating Council, which would allow first responders — police, firefighters and emergency workers — to communicate between agencies on a single assigned radio frequency. Girgenti has also pushed for increased aid to the New Jersey National Guard
, helping to enact legislation which increases the base pay of Guard members when on active duty in the State. On January 7, 2010, the Senator voted against a measure that would have permitted same-sex marriages in New Jersey.
Before entering the Senate
, Girgenti served in the New Jersey General Assembly
, the lower house
of the New Jersey Legislature
, from 1978 to 1990. While in the Assembly, the Senator served as Deputy Majority Leader
in 1990, and Assistant Minority Leader
from 1986 to 1989. In March 1990, he was chosen by district Democrats to fill the Senate seat left vacant by the death of Frank X. Graves, Jr.
, and was sworn into the Senate on April 5, 1990.
Senator Girgenti served on the Hawthorne
Board of Education
from 1972 to 1976, serving as its Vice President from 1972 to 1973. Girgenti is a former director of the Passaic County
Mental Health Department, to which he was appointed in 1976 and became board president four months later.
Senator Girgenti received a B.A.
in 1969 from Seton Hall University
in Political Science and an M.A. in 1972 from St. John's University
in Government and Public Administration. He was born in Paterson, New Jersey
, and currently resides in Hawthorne.
On April 5, 2011, Senator Girgenti announced that he will not seek re-election to the Senate in 2011 due to possible redistricting concerns; Hawthorne was redistricted to District 38 and Girgenti would have had to run against Bob Gordon
in the Democratic primary if he wanted to keep his seat.
and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly
. The other representatives from the 35th District for the 2010-2011 Legislative Session are:
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, who has been serving in the New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Senate
New Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. From 1844 until 1965 New Jersey's counties elected one Senator, each. Under the 1844 Constitution the term of office was three years. The 1947...
from 1990, where he represents the 35th Legislative District.
Senator John A. Girgenti was the Majority Whip, a post he held from 2004 to 2007. He is currently the Assistant Majority Leader in the Senate and serves as the Chair of the Law and Public Safety Committee, Vice-Chair of the Judiciary Committee, and on the Transportation Committee.
Senator Girgenti has sponsored many important pieces of legislation that have become law, including a measure that requires a life sentence of community supervision for certain convicted sexual offenders who have completed their prison terms, and legislation that mandates and provides funding for sprinkler installation in New Jersey college dorms, following the Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University is a private Roman Catholic university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States. Seton Hall is also the oldest and largest Catholic university in the...
dormitory fire
Boland Hall Fire
The Boland Hall fire was a fatal fire in Boland Hall, a freshman residence hall on the Seton Hall University campus in South Orange, New Jersey, United States on January 19, 2000. Three students died and many more were injured. It was one of the deadliest college fires in recent U.S...
in 2000. He has also championed the law criminalizing the desecration of human remains, helping families preserve the dignity and respect of their deceased loved ones and has worked to keep criminals from profiting off of the sales of 'murderabilia.' He has also been opposed to the sale of realistic or replica toy guns to children and was a prime sponsor of the law mandating child-proof firearms or 'Smart Gun
Smart Gun
The Smart Gun or "Personalized Gun" is a concept gun that aims to reduce the misuse of guns by children/felons through the use of RFID chips or other proximity devices, fingerprint recognition, or magnetic rings...
s' be sold in the State.
Girgenti was one of the first Senators to call for enhanced fingerprinting requirements for state employees involved with domestic security, following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and has proposed legislation to update and modernize New Jersey's background check laws so that towns and communities can identify potential threats and prevent them from obtaining jobs where they could harm residents.
The Senator has also fought to create the State Public Safety Interoperable Communications Coordinating Council, which would allow first responders — police, firefighters and emergency workers — to communicate between agencies on a single assigned radio frequency. Girgenti has also pushed for increased aid to the New Jersey National Guard
New Jersey National Guard
The New Jersey Army National Guard consists of over 9000 Guardsmen. The Guard is currently engaged in several worldwide and homeland missions. Units have deployed to Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan, Germany and Egypt...
, helping to enact legislation which increases the base pay of Guard members when on active duty in the State. On January 7, 2010, the Senator voted against a measure that would have permitted same-sex marriages in New Jersey.
Before entering the Senate
New Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. From 1844 until 1965 New Jersey's counties elected one Senator, each. Under the 1844 Constitution the term of office was three years. The 1947...
, Girgenti served in the New Jersey General Assembly
New Jersey General Assembly
The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature.Since the election of 1967 , the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for a term of two years, each representing districts with average...
, the lower house
Lower house
A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house.Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide the lower house has come to wield more power...
of the New Jersey Legislature
New Jersey Legislature
The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the Senate...
, from 1978 to 1990. While in the Assembly, the Senator served as Deputy Majority Leader
Majority leader
In U.S. politics, the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.In the federal Congress, the role differs slightly in the two houses. In the House of Representatives, which chooses its own presiding officer, the leader of the majority party is elected the Speaker of the...
in 1990, and Assistant Minority Leader
Minority leader
In U.S. politics, the minority leader is the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative body. Given the two-party nature of the U.S. system, the minority leader is almost inevitably either a Republican or a Democrat, with their counterpart being of the opposite party. The position...
from 1986 to 1989. In March 1990, he was chosen by district Democrats to fill the Senate seat left vacant by the death of Frank X. Graves, Jr.
Frank X. Graves, Jr.
Frank Xavier Graves, Jr. was a American Democratic Party politician who is best known for serving two separate terms as Mayor of Paterson, New Jersey...
, and was sworn into the Senate on April 5, 1990.
Senator Girgenti served on the Hawthorne
Hawthorne, New Jersey
Hawthorne is a borough in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 18,218.Hawthorne was originally part of the now-defunct Manchester Township, which was later subdivided to create Hawthorne, Haledon, North Haledon, Prospect Park,...
Board of Education
Board of education
A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
from 1972 to 1976, serving as its Vice President from 1972 to 1973. Girgenti is a former director of the Passaic County
Passaic County, New Jersey
Passaic County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 501,226. Its county seat is Paterson...
Mental Health Department, to which he was appointed in 1976 and became board president four months later.
Senator Girgenti received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1969 from Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University is a private Roman Catholic university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States. Seton Hall is also the oldest and largest Catholic university in the...
in Political Science and an M.A. in 1972 from St. John's University
St. John's University (New York City)
St. John's University is a private, Roman Catholic, coeducational university located in New York City, United States. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1870, the school was originally located in the borough of Brooklyn in the neighborhood of Bedford–Stuyvesant...
in Government and Public Administration. He was born in Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson is a city serving as the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 146,199, rendering it New Jersey's third largest city and one of the largest cities in the New York City Metropolitan Area, despite a decrease of 3,023...
, and currently resides in Hawthorne.
On April 5, 2011, Senator Girgenti announced that he will not seek re-election to the Senate in 2011 due to possible redistricting concerns; Hawthorne was redistricted to District 38 and Girgenti would have had to run against Bob Gordon
Robert M. Gordon
Robert M. Gordon is an American Democratic Party politician who has served in the New Jersey Senate since January 8, 2008, where he represents the 38th legislative district. Gordon served in the General Assembly from 2004 to 2008, and was the 2007 Democratic nominee to succeed outgoing Senator...
in the Democratic primary if he wanted to keep his seat.
District 35
Each of the forty districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey SenateNew Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. From 1844 until 1965 New Jersey's counties elected one Senator, each. Under the 1844 Constitution the term of office was three years. The 1947...
and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly
New Jersey General Assembly
The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature.Since the election of 1967 , the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for a term of two years, each representing districts with average...
. The other representatives from the 35th District for the 2010-2011 Legislative Session are:
- Assemblywoman Elease EvansElease EvansElease Evans is an American Democratic Party politician, who serves in the New Jersey General Assembly, where she represents the 35th legislative district seat vacated by Alfred E. Steele on September 10, 2007. Evans was sworn into the Assembly on November 9, 2007...
, and - Assemblywoman Nellie PouNellie PouNelida "Nellie" Pou is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 1997, where she represents the 35th legislative district...
External links
- Senator Girgenti's legislative web page, New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey LegislatureThe New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the Senate...
- New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure forms
- New Jersey Senate Democrats Website Biography
- Senator John A. Girgenti, Project Vote SmartProject Vote SmartProject Vote Smart is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States...
- New Jersey Voter Information Website 2003