NJ Democrat Concerned State Senate Leadership is Again All White Men, Plans Challenge

New Jersey Senate Democrats selected Nicholas Scutari as their new leader Friday after the current president, Steve Sweeney, lost re-election to a Republican, the Associated Press reported.

But Democratic state Senator Nia Gill voiced concern that his appointment would give the governor, Assembly speaker and Senate president positions all to white men.

State lawmakers said after a closed-door session at the statehouse Friday that Scutari was approved by a voice vote, while Gill abstained. Gill said that she plans to submit her own name for consideration in January when the full Senate chamber holds a formal vote on new leadership, AP reported.

"When the doors close on those discussions, there will not be a voice of a woman. There will not be a voice of a minority there. There will be a voice of all white men," Gill said. "I want to be a Senate president of all the people."

In response to Gill's comments, Scutari said that people should assess him on his accomplishments and character and "not necessarily by skin color or what I look like."

"I'll vow to represent all New Jerseyans," he said.

Scutari will hold the second-most powerful position in New Jersey government and replace Sweeney, whose tenure that lasted more than a decade. He'll start in the position when the new legislative session begins, according to AP.

"This is truly a humbling experience, that a poor kid from Linden raised by a single mom could one day be selected as the Senate president-elect is really awe inspiring, and it is a true testament that the American dream is alive and well here in New Jersey," Scutari said after he was selected.

For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below.

As for what the agenda will look like in January when the new term begins, Scutari said, "It's too early to say."

Sweeney's loss shook New Jersey's political order and suggested that a GOP-leaning "red wave"—as Sweeney put it—is crashing on the state where Democrats have 1 million more registered voters than Republicans. Still, Democratic Governor Phil Murphy won reelection by nearly 3 points over his GOP challenger, Jack Ciattarelli, and has said he will continue to pursue the progressive policy goals he adopted in his first term.

Scutari has served in the Senate since 2004 and currently leads the powerful Judiciary Committee, which oversees hearings for the governor's appointments to courts, boards and other offices across the state. He is known for championing the legalization of recreational marijuana, which he shepherded through the Legislature this year.

Sweeney said this week that he won't be fading from politics, but he stopped short of saying whether he would run again for the Senate or pursue the governorship in 2025. He remains on the legislative redistricting commission, the panel that redraws the Legislature's district lines after the U.S. census.

Democrats lost two seats in the Senate this year, including Sweeney's, but they picked up a seat in the 16th District, where Assembly member Andrew Zwicker defeated former U.S. Representative Michael Pappas in a seat held by a retiring Republican.

Democrats will remain in control of the Legislature in the new term, which begins in January, but they will have fewer seats. In the Senate, their lead shrank to 24 from 25 seats, out of 40. In the Assembly, Republicans picked up at least four new seats and were leading in two others that AP has not called.

Scutari represents the 22nd District, which includes parts of Middlesex, Somerset and Union counties. An attorney, Scutari serves as the municipal prosecutor in Linden, Union County.

Standing alongside Scutari on Friday were Majority Leader-elect Senator Teresa Ruiz and President Pro Tempore-elect Senator Sandra Cunningham. Ruiz said she was the first Latina to hold the position and called her selection an honor.