The longest-serving state Senate president in New Jersey history, who lost his seat to a Trump-supporting truck driver, announced Monday he plans to run for governor.
Stephen Sweeney was the top lieutenant of the South Jersey Democratic Party machine. He was the most powerful man in the state Legislature, serving 12 years as president, until he lost his seat in 2021 to Edward Durr, a Republican truck driver who had virtually no name recognition or campaign funding.
“Sometimes in life, you face setbacks,” Sweeney said in a video announcing his run for New Jersey governor, which he posted to X, the site formerly known as Twitter. “But New Jerseyans get up, we dust ourselves off, we get back to work, because that’s who we are.”
Sweeney has not yet replied to a request for an interview.
He is not likely to gain the support of progressive Democrats in New Jersey. In 2011, he worked closely with former Republican Gov. Chris Christie to cut pension and health benefits for teachers, police and other public employees. When Democrat Phil Murphy became governor, the two men clashed over passing a millionaire’s tax, which Murphy had proposed.
Sweeney got his start in politics fighting for the rights of people with disabilities.
“If you knew me, you might have thought of me as a tough guy. But when our baby Lauren was born prematurely with Down syndrome, it turned my world upside down,” he said in his campaign video. “Then I learned how hard it can be to get services for people with special needs.”
Sweeney, 64, was an ironworker and union leader who began his political career on the Gloucester County Commission in 1997. He was then elected to the state Senate in 2001 and served in both positions for eight years.
Sweeney is the childhood friend of George Norcross, the party boss who extended his power from South Jersey across the whole state by building an alliance with Christie when he served as governor.
His experience in the Legislature means he understands a broad array of issues affecting the state, according to Ben Dworkin, director of the Rowan Institute of Public Policy and Citizenship at Rowan University. On the other hand, he vies in a statewide race with a smaller base of supporters.
“He's from South Jersey, which doesn't have nearly as many votes as North Jersey does. So, he has to be able to show that he can expand his base, that he can expand his network of support into the more populated northern counties,” Dworkin said.
Murphy, now in his second term, is barred from serving a third consecutive term as governor.
Sweeney and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop are the only Democratic candidates who have declared their candidacy, but the primary election is still 18 months away. Democrats Mikie Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer, both members of Congress, are also expected to run.
Republican Jack Ciattarelli, who came within three percentage points of Murphy in their 2021 matchup, has also declared his candidacy.
If the gubernatorial primary in 2025 is between Sweeney, Fulop, Sherill and Gottheimer, it will include a candidate from four of the five counties with the largest number of Democratic voters: Hudson, Essex, Camden and Bergen.
County politics are a key feature of New Jersey elections. Each county Democratic Party organization makes an endorsement of candidates who then run all together on what’s called “the county line” slate. Research shows the slate gives the endorsed candidates a large advantage over their rivals.
In the runup to the 2017 gubernatorial election, Murphy was able to get most of the county endorsements, which forced both Fulop and Sweeney out of the race. By entering the race early, it is expected that both men will vie for those endorsements.
