Britnee N. Timberlake Announces Senate Run

In 2018, Britnee N. Timberlake was sworn-in to serve as a member of the New Jersey General Assembly, representing the 34th Legislative District, comprised of Clifton, East Orange, Orange, and Montclair. She serves as the Chair of the Commerce and Economic Development Committee and Vice-Chair of the Homeland Security Committee. In the past, Timberlake served on the Community Development and Affairs, Housing, and Education Committees.

Now, Timberlake is setting her sights higher. In a written statement, the Assemblywoman announced that she will be making a run for the NJ State Senate.

The statement is as follows;

"After speaking with my husband, children, family, and friends, I have decided to run to be your next District 34 State Senator, which includes Belleville, Bloomfield, East Orange, Glen Ridge, Nutley, and Orange. I am always grateful to God for the opportunity to work hard for people, and am thankful the local, county, and state Democratic Committee has given me their support. I look forward to the campaign and governance with my running mates, Mike Venezia (Bloomfield) and Carmen T. Morales (Belleville).

In just five years as your District 34 Assemblywoman, time and time again, my work has proven to be consistent with my slogan of putting "Principles Over Politics." At my core, I am an affordable housing advocate and a mom who answered the call to run for higher office. That is why, while on the inside, at the decision-making table, I unapologetically carry the message of the people with me and collaborate with my colleagues to make our society better; this approach has yielded positive change you can see and feel throughout New Jersey: I am proud to have been one of the prime sponsors of the country's strongest environmental justice law and the $15-an-hour minimum wage bill. I worked hard with advocates to get passed the law requiring New Jersey to have an independent investigation if someone loses their life during interaction with law enforcement. To name a few, my record also includes bills to beat back climate change, like the electric school bus pilot program, laws to expand housing access and equity creation, gain social justice, the expansion of women's rights and freedom, reduction of the maternal and infant death rates, and for insurance companies to pay for procedures like preserving male and female reproductive abilities when facing harsh radiation treatments for illnesses like cancer.

Amongst many things, I am currently working on the Community Wealth Preservation Program bill to address the state's widest racial wealth gap exasperated by foreclosures; and am also working to "ban book banning" because everyone should be able to read what they want and see themselves represented in different forms of literature.

My most successful work to secure funding revolves around the NJ State Affordable Housing Trust Fund and the new Affordable Housing Production Fund. Alongside grass-roots advocacy groups, we got the fund to go from $0 initially proposed to over $60 Million. We also gained an additional $305 Million in a newly created Housing Production Fund. In addition to housing, in collaboration, I have secured millions of dollars for infrastructure train station improvements, and funding for different programs and public education institutions.

Standing on the side of workers' rights is crucial to me, which is why I have supported labor unions in the quest for collective bargaining and fair contracts. I have also supported legislation protecting our first responders, hospital workers, public school teachers, and more.

During the pandemic, my staff and I secured PPE for our hospitals, helped hundreds of people with unemployment issues, and partnered with organizations to bring weekly food distributions to my represented towns. We also provided services to veterans.

In a time when partisan politics has been a fruitless distraction throughout the country, while in the Assembly, I have intentionally built relationships across the aisle and am proud to have authored several bipartisan laws such as the one to cut down on excessive EZPass violations.

In closing, I have always been about doing the job in partnership with the community vs. just holding a title. Going to the Senate will further allow us to simultaneously amplify the systemic issues of this great state while legislating the solutions. I am excited to be running so that together we can continue to put "Principles over Politics" for the advancement of all people in New Jersey. More about our campaign can be found at www.ElectTimberlake.com."

The election will take place on November 7, 2023.