These are six NJ legislative races to watch this fall

With September well underway and a new lieutenant governor settling into her office in Trenton, attention is turning to the other major political event this fall: elections for the New Jersey Legislature.

All 120 seats in the Legislature are on the ballot in November, and with them, control of New Jersey state government.

While most ballots will be full of familiar faces, there are a few races that may turn contentious as Nov. 7 looms. Meanwhile, in a handful of districts, there are names on ballots that have never been there before — with some new since the June primary.

State election officials are ramping up to get the election underway later this month — readying to distribute mail-in ballots and recruiting poll watchers.

Here are six legislative races to watch this fall:

District 2

Republican incumbents in this Atlantic County district face challenges from a reshuffled Democratic slate.

State Sen. Vincent Polistina and his counterparts in the Assembly, Donald Guardian and Claire Swift, are looking to defend their seats.

Demcocratic County Commissioner Caren Fitzpatrick will oppose Polistina for the district's state Senate seat while Lisa Bender and Alphonso Harrell look to take seats in the Assembly.

Offshore wind will likely be a talking point as the campaign season wears on, along with the job market and the economy.

NJ's 2023 election FAQ: Voter registration, ballot deadlines, vote-by-mail and more

District 4

The state Senate seat in this South Jersey district will feature a newcomer for the first time in decades, with state Sen. Fred Madden Jr., a Democrat, retiring at the end of his current term.

Assemblyman Paul Moriarty looks to jump to the upper chamber but will have to fend off former Washington Township Councilman Christopher Del Borrello.

On the Assembly side, Dan Hutchison and Cody Miller will run for the Democrats while Matthew Walker and Amanda Esposito try to gain seats for the Republicans.

Though the district has been a Democratic stronghold, with Madden holding the seat for 22 years, Republicans have been more engaged.

District 8

The state Senate seat here is up for grabs because Sen. Jean Stanfield, a Republican, opted not to seek reelection. The Democrats have former Pemberton Councilwoman Gaye Burton at the top of the ticket, with Andrea Katz and Anthony Angelozzi seeking to win Assembly seats.

On the Republican side, former Burlington County Freeholder Latham Tiver joins a ticket with incumbent Assemblymen Mike Torrissi Jr. and Brandon Umba.

Candidates have already started to focus on issues that have made national headlines and are becoming more common in the state, such as sex education curriculum and clean energy.

District 11

After redistricting due to the 2020 census, this Monmouth County district is bound to be a battleground. It is already the only district split with a Democrat in the state Senate and Republicans in the Assembly, and party leaders from both sides hope to gain ground.

State Sen. Vin Gopal faces a challenge from Stephen Dnistrian, and his Assembly running mates, Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul, are hoping to upset incumbent Assemblywomen Marilyn Piperno and Kim Eulner.

Gopal won reelection in 2021 by fewer than 3,000 votes and is a target this year for Republicans, but his Assembly counterparts also face an uphill battle, as the new district lines have skewed this district slightly in favor of the Democrats.

District 16

State Sen. Andrew Zwicker will face a rematch from Republican Michael Pappas, the Bridgewater Township administrator, who served one term in Congress in the 1990s. Zwicker captured this Central Jersey district, which includes parts of Mercer, Somerset, Hunterdon and Middlesex counties, by 5,000 votes, or with 53% of the vote to 47% for Pappas, in an election year when Democrats faced a backlash nationally.

Zwicker will be joined on the ticket by incumbent Assemblyman Roy Frieman, and Mitchelle Drulis, who is seeking to replace Assemblywoman Sadaf Jaffer. Jaffer is stepping down after one term. Drulis was a district director for former U.S. Rep. Tom Malinowski.

Pappas will be joined by Clinton Councilman Ross Traphagen and Grace Zhang.

The Democrats are attempting to make abortion rights the central issue as part of a wider attempt to paint Pappas as part of right-wing culture warriors who will bring their extreme agenda to Trenton if elected. Pappas has indicated that he intends to cast Zwicker as out of touch with average New Jersey concerns as he advances his own brand of left-wing policies.

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District 38

Incumbent Democrats, state Sen. Joseph Lagana and Assemblywoman Lisa Swain and Assemblyman Christopher Tully, look to fend off Republican challengers Micheline Attieh for the Senate and Gail Horton and Barry Wilkes for the Assembly.

What's changed since the June primary?

Democrats in District 2: Although Pleasantville Councilman Victor Carmona won the primary in June, he withdrew from the race about six weeks later, and the Atlantic County Democrats replaced him with County Commissioner Caren Fitzpatrick.

That led to some further shuffling, as Fitzpatrick had been in the running for an Assembly seat in the district. She was replaced in that race by Lisa Bender.

Democrats in District 8: Former Pemberton Councilwoman Gaye Burton will run for state Senate on the Democratic ticket in November after Heather Cooper won the primary.

Cooper said a health issue caused her to withdraw from the race.

Democrats in District 17: Though the name on the ballot will look familiar, it’s not the same Egan running for Assembly this year.

Assemblyman Joseph Egan announced his retirement in July, and the district voted to replace him on the ballot with his son Kevin Egan. The elder Egan will hold his seat in the Assembly for the remainder of the year.

Both sides in District 27: Of all the districts to spend the summer searching for new candidates, only District 27 had to replace candidates from both parties.

On the Republican side, former Passaic County Freeholder Michael Mecca Jr. will run for Assembly. He is taking the place of primary winner Jonathan Sym.

There was considerably more of a domino effect on the Democratic ticket. When state Sen. Dick Codey announced his retirement after spending half a century in the Legislature, the party decided to fill that ballot spot with Assemblyman John McKeon. That left another spot empty on the ballot, so Livingston Councilwoman Rosaura Bagolie was chosen to run for the Assembly.

This story contains material from Staff Writer Charles Stile.

Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ election 2023: Six legislative races to watch this fall