Who is running for New Jersey senate and assembly in the 28th legislative district

The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire. 

The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.

Age: 64

Hometown: Maplewood

Occupation: Essex County deputy clerk

Personal background: I am a lifelong Essex County resident, born in Montclair where I attended public schools through high school graduation. I attended Fairleigh Dickinson University and spent many years as a corporate business sales executive. For the past six years I have had the honor of serving as deputy Essex County clerk. I have lived in Maplewood for the last 35 years with my husband, George. We are the proud parents of two adult children, a Newark police officer and a registered nurse. We are also grandparents to a 14-year-old and a 7-year-old.

Political background: I have been involved in political campaigns at the national, state, county and local level for more than 30 years. For more than two decades, I have served as a district leader on the Maplewood County Committee and as vice chair for more than 10 years.

Why are you running for office? I was asked to run for the open Assembly seat vacated by my great friend and mentor Assemblywoman Mila Jasey following a robust discussion as to which candidate among those under consideration would best represent the newly drawn 28th Legislative District. The 28th consists of five communities, including two wealthy, racially diverse towns (South Orange and Maplewood) and three (Irvington, Hillside and parts of Newark), that face persistent socioeconomic challenges. Representing diverse suburban and urban districts, with what will be at times very different priorities and concerns, will not be an easy task, but my knowledge, experience and skill set will enable me to be an effective advocate for the entire district.

Key election issue: Ensuring individuals and families have safe, affordable places to call home, with access to employment opportunities and job training and re-training to enhance their earning potential, and the ability to attend schools where the quality of education is not ZIP-code dependent.

Housing affordability is dependent upon a secure job with good pay, which is in turn related to the quality of education that is available. Far too many of our students, especially those in SDA districts, have substandard facilities and feel the impact of the current teacher shortage more dramatically than those in wealthy districts. We need to find ways to promote regionalization of school districts, giving students public school choice, build tech and career high schools in underserved communities and in the meantime increase the number of seats in our existing county vocational and technical schools. Job training and apprenticeships lead to the jobs that will facilitate access to programs, such as the HMFA first time homebuyer programs providing down payment assistance. Home ownership is the most effective and sustainable means of creating financial security and generational wealth.

Example of a successful project: I am proud of the work that I have done in my capacity as deputy Essex County clerk to promote the vote by mail and the early voting efforts. Safe and secure elections are critical, and the processes that we have implemented in the County Clerk’s Office working with our Clerk Chris Durkin have ensured that vote-by-mail ballots are received by voters requesting them, publicizing the availability and locations of drop boxes and the dates and locations of early voting.

Example of a challenge faced: The greatest challenge we face is maintaining voter confidence in the election process. We have committed to ensuring that every vote will be counted, and it is a tremendous responsibility at a time when so many voters believe that the process is tainted and votes are suppressed. The work we do, in concert with the Board of Elections, ensures that the Essex County voting process is secure, accessible and a paper trail exists of every vote cast, whether by vote by mail or at our hundreds of polling locations.

On NJ’s gun laws: New Jersey’s gun laws are among the strongest in the nation, and I would have voted in favor of every single bill that has helped secure that reputation. Concealed carry is dangerous and not in the best interest of our communities, individually or collectively, and I do not believe that our definitions of sensitive places where guns should be banned is overbroad. If elected, I will support reasonable regulations to stop the scourge of gun violence, including banning ghost guns, stringent background checks, raising the age of purchase and possession of a firearm to age 21 and would support mandatory training in the use of firearms and securing them when they are not in use. I also support restrictions on permissible purchase to promote lawful use only.

On the Murphy administration’s climate change proposals: Just as is the case nationwide, New Jersey has an overreliance on fossil fuel that must be addressed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If we continue to focus our efforts upon expansion of wind and solar energy use, while also building with green products, incentivize the purchase of hybrid and (preferably) electric vehicles, and provide adequate charging stations to meet the expanding need, the market will be able to end fossil fuel use by 2035. Alternatively, climate change will continue to exacerbate to a point where we may well find ourselves unable to reverse the man-made damage to the environment we have created.

On housing affordability and property taxes: Implementation of a statewide rent control policy, continuing to work with agencies, such as HCDNNJ and FSNJ, to build affordable housing, renovate existing buildings to meet the need by incentivizing community development, expand HMFA home ownership financial programs, use statutory tools that have been created to prevent foreclosures, continue to expand eligibility for ANCHOR, senior freeze and carefully monitor the initiation of StayNJ in 2026 in the hope that we have found a real solutions to enabling our seniors to age in place by providing meaningful tax relief.

Candidate’s website: facebook.com/p/Garnet-Hall-for-Assembly-100090937136988/

The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.

The candidate did not respond to the questionnaire.