New Jersey's

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...

 18th Legislative District is one of 40 in the state, covering the Middlesex County

Middlesex County, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 750,162 people, 265,815 households, and 190,855 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,422 people per square mile . There were 273,637 housing units at an average density of 884 per square mile...

 municipalities of East Brunswick Township

East Brunswick Township, New Jersey

The town is located southwest of New York City and 48 miles northeast of Philadelphia.Lawrence Brook, a tributary of the Raritan River, runs along the western border of the township...

, Edison Township

Edison, New Jersey

Edison Township is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township...

, Helmetta Borough

Helmetta, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,825 people, 746 households, and 495 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,153.6 people per square mile . There were 769 housing units at an average density of 907.5 per square mile...

, Metuchen Borough

Metuchen, New Jersey

Metuchen is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, which is 8 miles northeast of New Brunswick, 18 miles southwest of Newark, 24 miles southwest of Jersey City, and 29 miles southwest of Manhattan, all part of the New York metropolitan area...

, South Plainfield Borough

South Plainfield, New Jersey

South Plainfield is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 23,385....

, South River Borough

South River, New Jersey

South River is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 15,322....

 and Spotswood Borough

Spotswood, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2008, there were 7,880 people, 3,099 households, and 2,163 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,389.8 people per square mile . There were 3,158 housing units at an average density of 1,358.5 per square mile...

 As of the 2000 United States Census, the district had a population of 204,120.

Changes to the district made as part of the New Jersey Legislative redistricting in 2001

New Jersey Legislative Districts, 2001 redistricting

The members of the New Jersey Legislature are chosen from 40 electoral districts. Each district elects one Senator and two Assemblymen.New Jersey is one of only seven states with nested state legislative districts, in which two or more state House are coextensive with a single state Senate seat. In...

, based on the results of the 2000 United States Census, removed Milltown Borough

Milltown, New Jersey

Milltown is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 6,893.Milltown was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on January 29, 1889, from portions of North Brunswick Township, based on the...

 (to the 17th Legislative District

17th Legislative District (New Jersey)

New Jersey's 17th Legislative District is one of 40 in the state, covering the Middlesex County municipalities of Highland Park Borough, Milltown Borough, New Brunswick City, North Brunswick Township, Piscataway Township, along with the Somerset County municipality of Franklin Township...

) and North Brunswick Township

North Brunswick Township, New Jersey

-Demographics:At the 2010 census, there were 40,742 people, 13,635 households and 9,367 families residing in the township. The population density was 3,018.3 per square mile . There were 13,932 housing units at an average density of 1,158.8 per square mile...

 (also to District 17), and added Helmetta (from the 14th Legislative District), South Plainfield Borough (from District 17) and Spotswood Borough (from the 13th Legislative District).

Demographic characteristics

The district has the highest percentage of Asian American

Asian American

Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...

 residents of any district statewide, with African American

African American

African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

, Hispanic

Hispanic

Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

 and elderly below statewide averages. Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by a better than 2 to 1 margin.

Political representation

The district is represented in the New Jersey 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...

 by Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....

 (D

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...

, Edison

Edison, New Jersey

Edison Township is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township...

) and 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...

 by Peter J. Barnes III

Peter J. Barnes III

Peter J. Barnes III is an American Democratic Party politician, who served in New Jersey's General Assembly since 2007, where he represents the 18th legislative district...

 (D

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...

, Edison

Edison, New Jersey

Edison Township is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township...

) and Patrick J. Diegnan

Patrick J. Diegnan

Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...

 (D

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...

, South Plainfield

South Plainfield, New Jersey

South Plainfield is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 23,385....

).

Election history

In April 1991, five-term incumbent Frank M. Pelly announced that he would not seek re-election and was named by Governor James Florio

James Florio

James Joseph "Jim" Florio is a Democratic politician who served as the 49th Governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994, the first Italian American to hold the position...

 to serve as executive director of the New Jersey Lottery

New Jersey Lottery

The New Jersey Lottery is run by the government of New Jersey. Its games consist of Powerball, Mega Millions, Pick-6, Jersey Cash 5, Pick-4, Pick-3, and scratch tickets. The Lottery is headquartered in the One Lawrence Park Complex in Lawrence Township, Mercer County.New Jersey Lottery players must...

. In the 1991 Republican landslide, Jack Sinagra

Jack Sinagra

Jack G. Sinagra is an American Republican Party politician who was the Mayor of East Brunswick, New Jersey and served in the New Jersey Senate from 1992 to 2002, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...

 took the Senate seat vacated by Democrat Thomas H. Paterniti

Thomas H. Paterniti

Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...

, while in the Assembly race, Harriet E. Derman

Harriet E. Derman

Harriet E. Derman is an American Republican Party politician who was elected to two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where she represented the 18th Legislative District from 1992 to 1996...

 and running mate Jeffrey A. Warsh

Jeffrey A. Warsh

Jeffrey A. Warsh is an American Republican Party politician who served two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, from 1992 to 1996, where he represented the 18th Legislative District, which covers portions of Middlesex County...

 were elected, knocking off Democratic incumbent George A. Spadoro

George A. Spadoro

George A. Spadoro is an American Democratic Party politician who served three terms as Mayor of Edison, New Jersey, and two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...

 and his running mate Michael Baker. Derman and Warsh won re-election in 1993, defeating former Assemblymember Thomas H. Paterniti

Thomas H. Paterniti

Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...

 and his running mate Matthew Vaughn.

After Christine Whitman took office in 1994, she named Derman to head the Department of Community Affairs. Republican Joanna Gregory-Scocchi was chosen by a Republican special convention to fill Derman's vacancy. In a November 1994 special election, early favorite Gregory-Scocchi was defeated by Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....

, after disclosures that Gregory-Scocchi's temporary employment firm had hired illegal immigrants.

In the 1995 elections, the Assembly seats swung back to the Democrats, with Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono

Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....

 holding onto her seat and her running mate Peter J. Barnes II winning too, defeating Republican incumbent Warsh and his running mate Jane Tousman, despite Republicans outspending the Democrats by a 2-1 margin in the bitterly fought battleground district.

In May 2001, Sinagra announced that he would not run for a fourth term, leaving Barbara Buono as the favorite to pick up the seat for the Democrats. Buono went on to win the Senate seat, and in the Assembly Peter J. Barnes II won re-election together with running mate Patrick J. Diegnan

Patrick J. Diegnan

Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...

, leaving all three legislative seats controlled by Democrats for the first time since 1991.

In March 2007, after Peter J. Barnes II was confirmed to a seat on the New Jersey State Parole Board

New Jersey State Parole Board

The New Jersey State Parole Board is a governmental body in the U.S. State of New Jersey that is responsible for assisting offenders to reenter society as law-abiding residents....

, his son Peter J. Barnes III

Peter J. Barnes III

Peter J. Barnes III is an American Democratic Party politician, who served in New Jersey's General Assembly since 2007, where he represents the 18th legislative district...

 was chosen to fill his vacant seat in the Assembly by a convention of Democratic party delegates.

Session	State Senate	Assembly
1976-1977	Bernard J. Dwyer Bernard J. Dwyer Bernard James Dwyer was an American Democratic Party politician, who served as a United States Representative from New Jersey from 1981 to 1993.-Biography:...	James Bornheimer	John H. Froude
1978-1979	Bernard J. Dwyer Bernard J. Dwyer Bernard James Dwyer was an American Democratic Party politician, who served as a United States Representative from New Jersey from 1981 to 1993.-Biography:...	James Bornheimer	John H. Froude
1980-1981		James Bornheimer	Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...
1982-1983	James Bornheimer	Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...	Frank M. Pelly
1984-1985	Peter P. Garibaldi	Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...	Frank M. Pelly
1986-1987		Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...	Frank M. Pelly
1988-1989	Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti Thomas H. Paterniti is an American dentist and Democratic Party politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature, where he represented the 18th Legislative District...	Frank M. Pelly	George A. Spadoro George A. Spadoro George A. Spadoro is an American Democratic Party politician who served three terms as Mayor of Edison, New Jersey, and two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...
1990-1991		Frank M. Pelly	George A. Spadoro George A. Spadoro George A. Spadoro is an American Democratic Party politician who served three terms as Mayor of Edison, New Jersey, and two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...
1992-1993	Jack Sinagra Jack Sinagra Jack G. Sinagra is an American Republican Party politician who was the Mayor of East Brunswick, New Jersey and served in the New Jersey Senate from 1992 to 2002, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...	Harriet E. Derman Harriet E. Derman Harriet E. Derman is an American Republican Party politician who was elected to two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where she represented the 18th Legislative District from 1992 to 1996...	Jeffrey A. Warsh Jeffrey A. Warsh Jeffrey A. Warsh is an American Republican Party politician who served two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, from 1992 to 1996, where he represented the 18th Legislative District, which covers portions of Middlesex County...
1994-1995	Jack Sinagra Jack Sinagra Jack G. Sinagra is an American Republican Party politician who was the Mayor of East Brunswick, New Jersey and served in the New Jersey Senate from 1992 to 2002, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...	Harriet E. Derman Harriet E. Derman Harriet E. Derman is an American Republican Party politician who was elected to two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, where she represented the 18th Legislative District from 1992 to 1996...	Jeffrey A. Warsh Jeffrey A. Warsh Jeffrey A. Warsh is an American Republican Party politician who served two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly, from 1992 to 1996, where he represented the 18th Legislative District, which covers portions of Middlesex County...
1996-1997		Peter J. Barnes II	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....
1998-1999	Jack Sinagra Jack Sinagra Jack G. Sinagra is an American Republican Party politician who was the Mayor of East Brunswick, New Jersey and served in the New Jersey Senate from 1992 to 2002, where he represented the 18th Legislative District.-Biography:...	Peter J. Barnes II	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....
2000-2001		Peter J. Barnes II	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....
2002-2003	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....	Peter J. Barnes II	Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...
2004-2005	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....	Peter J. Barnes II	Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...
2006-2007		Peter J. Barnes II	Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...
2008-2009	Barbara Buono Barbara Buono Barbara Buono is an American Democratic Party politician, who has been serving in the New Jersey State Senate since 2002, where she represents the 18th Legislative District....	Peter J. Barnes II	Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...
2010-2011		Peter J. Barnes III Peter J. Barnes III Peter J. Barnes III is an American Democratic Party politician, who served in New Jersey's General Assembly since 2007, where he represents the 18th legislative district...	Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan Patrick J. Diegnan is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2002, where he represents the 18th legislative district.-Early life and family:...