Joan Voss

It might not be a coincidence that the last three state Senators from district 38 have been from Paramus.

There was Paul Contillo, then Louis Kosco, and finally Joseph Coniglio.

Now, two of the four contenders for the position are from Paramus – Mayor James Tedesco and Bergen County Freeholder Connie Wagner (who, unlike the other three, has not yet declared an intention to run for the seat).

State Sen. Loretta Weinberg today praised the integrity of two potential Senate candidates in the neighboring 38th district, and said that Democratic Party leaders should let the elected county committee members should make the decision.

"Senator Joseph Coniglio made a very tough decision. The legal system will now run its course, and I wish him well," said Weinberg. "I also certainly hope that none of our own democratic party leaders, nor any Republican will insinuate that my colleagues, Assembly members Bob Gordon or Joan Voss, are somehow implicated in this investigation because they received subpoenas. I know them both to be hardworking legislators of great integrity."

The Bergen County Democratic Organization has announced the meeting at which they’ll pick the replacement for State Senator Joe Coniglio. 

The meeting will be held on Sunday at 6 pm at BCDO headquarters in Hackensack.  It will be closed to everyone except staff, municipal chairs, candidates and county committee members. 

The timing of Joseph Coniglio's announcement was terrible for Robert Gordon, a Democratic Assemblyman from the 38th district with an interest in seeking Coniglio's State Senate seat. Coniglio, the target of a federal corruption investigation, dropped his bid for re-election to a third term around 5:30 PM yesterday, just as Gordon, who is Jewish, was preparing to start his observance of the Rosh Hashanah holiday. That means Gordon might not be able to begin campaigning until Friday afternoon for an election that might come on Monday evening. (Monday is the deadline to replace candidates on the ballot, although over the last five years, the courts have made that deadline highly flexible.)

Fort Lee Democrats have picked Councilman Mark Sokolich as their candidate for Mayor. He will replace Jack Alter, who died in office last month.  Sokolich, an attorney, was appointed to the Council in 2003, after Joan Voss resigned to take her seat in the State Assembly.

State Sen. Joe Coniglio has agreed to drop his re-election bid, sources sayState Sen. Joseph Coniglio, who is the target of a federal corruption investigation, has agreed to drop his bid for re-election in the 38th district. Coniglio had resisted internal pressure from Bergen Democratic leaders to drop out of the race, but has now told Democratic officials that he would end his bid for a third term.

But Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero is strongly denying that Coniglio is dropping out, saying the report is "absolutely not true."

State Sen. Joseph Coniglio is the target of a federal corruption investigationThe two Republican Assembly candidates in the 38th district say that Assemblymen Robert Gordon and Assemblywoman Joan Voss should "admonish the actions" of their running mate, State Sen. Joseph Coniglio. Coniglio, the target of a federal corruption investigation, is running a joint campaign with Gordon and Voss.

State Sen. Joseph Coniglio offered his first detailed response to allegations that he used his legislative post to help his employer, the Hackensack University Medical Center.  Coniglio is a target of a federal probe, which sometimes is a precursor to an indictment.

Today, his campaign manager, Brian Hague, issued a lengthy statement responding to a decision of the bi-partisan Joint Committee on Ethical Standards to reopen a previously-dismissed ethics complaint filed against Coniglio.

State Sen. Joseph Coniglio is the target of a federal corruption investigationThe Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards will revisit a complaint filed against State Sen. Joe Coniglio that they had previously dismissed.

Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan had filed a complaint to the committee earlier this year, accusing Coniglio of helping Hackensack University Medical Center, which had recently hired him as a plumbing consultant, lobby for state aid. The complaint was dismissed after Coniglio said he did not make any requests for the grants and merely voted on them.

Four legislators have been indicted this year on federal corruption charges, and a fifth has been told he is the target of a federal probe.

CHARGED: State Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden); State Sen. Sharpe James (D-Essex); Assemblyman Alfred Steele (D-Passaic); Assemblyman Mims Hackett (D-Essex).

TARGETED: State Sen. Joseph Coniglio (D-Bergen)

SUBPOENAED: State Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union); Assemblyman Robert Gordon (D-Bergen); Assemblywoman Joan Voss (D-Bergen); Assemblyman and Union City Mayor Brian Stack (D-Hudson)

UNCLEAR: U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez