Essex County Lawmakers Seek New Terms In NJ Assembly: Election 2025

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Several state lawmakers who represent towns in Essex County are running for re-election in 2025.

The races for New Jersey Senate and Assembly are heating up, with a primary election set for June 10 and the general election taking place on Nov. 4. Learn more about voting in New Jersey here.

Essex County voters will be seeing some familiar names at the polls, including Chris DePhillips and Al Barlas (Republicans), as well as Mike Venezia, Carmen Theresa Morales, Alixon Collazos-Gill and Rosy Bagolie (Democrats).

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DEMS IN NJ-34

Venezia and Morales – both Democrats – recently announced their re-election bids for Assembly seats in the 34th district, which includes the municipalities of Belleville, Bloomfield, East Orange, Glen Ridge, Nutley and Orange.

Venezia, a lifelong Bloomfield resident, served as the township's youngest mayor from 2014 to 2024 before capturing an Assembly seat in 2023.

“The progress we've made in the district lays a strong foundation for our continued efforts to better the quality of life for all residents, both locally and across the state of New Jersey,” he said, looking back on his first term.

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Morales – another first-time assembly member – has over 25 years of experience in education and is the director of curriculum and instruction for the Essex County Schools of Technology.

“Leadership is about listening to the needs of the people and acting on them,” Morales said. “I have worked to uplift our constituents by securing critical funding, advancing policy initiatives, and providing support to those in need.”

“Our first year in the Assembly has been full of progress, but there’s still much to accomplish,” she added.

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GOP IN NJ-40

DePhillips and Barlas are running against for Assembly seats as Republicans in the state’s 40th district, which includes the Essex County towns of Caldwell, Essex Fells, Fairfield, North Caldwell, Verona and West Caldwell. The district also includes several towns in Bergen and Passaic counties.

DePhillips serves as the conference leader of the Assembly Republican Caucus, and as a member of the Science, Innovation & Technology Committee and the Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee.

Barlas serves as the co-chair of the Select Committee on Ballot Design and as a member of the Budget Committee, Community Development and Women’s Affair Committee and the Labor Committee.

“As your representative, I work to deliver real results for our community – from flood mitigation, to ensuring our schools get their fair share of funding, to fixing our roads and bridges,” DePhillips said.

“I am excited for the campaign ahead and another term fighting for what’s right,” he added.

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Barlas said that he is “more energized than ever” as he finishes his first term as a state assemblyman.

“Our communities and families face many challenges – from high costs due to inflation, reckless policies threatening the overdevelopment of our communities to ever increasing taxes that are strangling small business and families,” Barlas said.

“I am seeking reelection to continue my fight against these extreme policies and to put people before reckless ideology,” he added.

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DEMS IN NJ-27

Collazos-Gill and Bagolie are running for re-election as Democrats in the 27th district, which includes the towns of Livingston, Millburn, Montclair, Roseland and West Orange in Essex County, and Clifton in Passaic County.

A spokesperson confirmed to Patch on Wednesday that Collazos-Gill, a Montclair resident, has thrown her hat into the ring for another Assembly term in 2025. She was first elected in 2023.

Collazos-Gill serves on the following committees: Children, Families and Food Security; Environment, Natural Resources and Solid Waste; Regulated Professions.

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Bagolie, a former town council member in Livingston, officially launched her re-election campaign earlier this week, running on a platform of “protecting workers’ rights, strengthening public safety and expanding access to education and health care.” Her priorities also include “promoting reproductive freedom, enacting common-sense gun control, advancing civil rights and social justice, and expanding benefits for seniors.”

“I’m running for re-election because there is still so much more to do – and so much at stake,” Bagolie said.

“In a time when public education, equity and civil rights are under attack, it is more important than ever to have strong, unified voices in Trenton,” she said. “I want to continue to be that voice for my constituents, and I am committed to building a stronger and more equitable New Jersey.”

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