Wayne Bryant

The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that Assemblywoman Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D-Camden) will not seek re-election to an eighth term this year.  A formal announcement is expected today.  Cruz-Perez, 48, was first elected to the Assembly in a 1995 special election convention to replace Wayne Bryant, who moved up to the State Senate.  She ran for Mayor of Camden in 2005, but lost to incumbent Gwendolyn Faison.

The vacancy on the Democratic ticket in the Democratic-dominated fifth district is likely to be the second this year.  State Sen. Dana Redd is almost a shoo-in to win election as Camden Mayor, which will result in a vacant State Senate seat in January. 

Former State Sen. Wayne Bryant was convicted of soliciting a bribe -- a no-show job at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey -- in exchange for helping the school receive over $10 million from a state budget he influenced as Appropriations Committee Chairman.   Bryant is awaiting sentencing pending his appeal.  But despite his status as a convicted felon, he remains a member of a fairly prestigious club: the Rutgers University Hall of Distinguished Alumni (HDA).

According to their website, the Hall of Distinguished Alumni "honors alumni who have distinguished themselves by contributions they have made in their fields of endeavor, by the leadership they have exhibited, and by the general benefits to the larger society resulting from their activities."  The Rutgers Office of Alumni Relations says there has been no discussion regarding the status of any of he 187 hall of famers.  "There are no rules in place to examine the existing members of the HDA," a representative of the alumni office told PolitickerNJ.com.

Two prominent New Jersey politicians who were convicted on federal corruption charges last year are still sitting on huge war chests.  Sharpe James, a former Newark Mayor and State Senator, has $1,161,398 in his old campaign account, while former Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Wayne Bryant has $597,021.  Both accounts have been largely untouched since their criminal convictions.

The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission turned down Bryant's request to use campaign funds for his legal defense.  Former State Sen. Joseph Coniglio, whose corruption trial begins next month, had used some of his campaign funds for legal expenses prior to the ELEC ruling.  Coniglio has $16,358 in his account.

Curtis Jenkins, a labor leader and Camden City Councilman, is a possible candidate for State Senator if Dana Redd becomes the next Mayor of Camden.

If Dana Redd wins her race for Mayor of Camden, her departure from the Legislature in January would mean a special election convention for her State Senate seat – and possibly a second one for the State Assembly if Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts were to move up to the Senate.  One possible candidate to fill a legislative vacancy is labor leader Curtis Jenkins, a first-term Camden City Councilman.

Jenkins is the Business Manager for the Camden-based Laborers' International Union Local 222.  He is also Vice President of the Southern New Jersey Building Laborers' District Council, Vice-President of the Central Laborer AFL-CIO, and Trustee of the Southern New Jersey Building Trades Council.

Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie takes a photo of Gov. Jon Corzine at a swearing in ceremony in Jackson Township last summer.

Chris Christie’s refusal to have his picture taken with Rick Merkt at a Republican event in Summit was probably just the former federal prosecutor being angry with his Mendham neighbor for entering the race for the GOP gubernatorial nomination.  But the drama does raise an interesting question: how should people read Christie if he declines future photo opportunities? 

Back in 2006, when Barack Obama came to Camden County to campaign for U.S. Senate candidate Bob Menendez,  then-State Sen. Wayne Bryant, not yet under indictment but under fire for some ethical mishaps, joined the two on stage – creating an incredibly awkward moment for the Menendez campaign. 

Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie will enter the race for Governor today.

Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie is expected to announce today that he intends to seek the Republican nomination for Governor.  Christie will file formal papers with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.

Christie, 46, served as New Jersey’s federal prosecutor from 2002 to 2008, where he led a virtual war on political corruption.  His convictions included former Newark Mayor Sharpe James, former Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Wayne Bryant, and Essex County Executive James Treffinger.

Former Assembly Minority Leader Willie Brown passed away on Monday.    He was 68.  Brown spent 24 years representing Newark in the State Assembly.

First elected in 1973, at age 33, he was a member of a freshman Essex Assembly delegation that included Richard Codey.  He was re-elected eleven times.  He was the Assembly Minority Leader in 1988 and 1989.  When Democrats took control of the Assembly in 1989, the caucus picked Joseph Doria for Speaker and Wayne Bryant for Majority Leader; Brown became the Speaker Pro Tempore.

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Senator Bill Baroni, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement today regarding a state appeals court ruling prohibiting convicted former State Senator Wayne Bryant from using his campaign funds for legal defense: