Joseph Lagana
2018 - Present
2028
6
Joseph Lagana (Democratic Party) is a member of the New Jersey State Senate, representing District 38. He assumed office on April 15, 2018. His current term ends on January 11, 2028.
Lagana (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the New Jersey State Senate to represent District 38. He won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Lagana previously served as a Democratic member of the New Jersey General Assembly, representing District 38.[1]
Biography
Lagana's professional experience includes working as a lawyer for Chasan Leyner & Lamparello, PC, as a law clerk to Hon. John A. Conte, Superior Court, Criminal Division, Bergen County Vicinage, and as Borough of Paramus Council president from 2012 to 2013.[2]
Education
- B.A., Fordham University (2000)
- J.D., Thomas M. Cooley Law School (2004)
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at:editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Lagana was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate Labor Committee, Vice Chair
2020-2021
Lagana was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Lagana was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate Labor Committee, Vice-Chair
- Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee
2016 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2016 legislative session, Lagana served on the following committees:
| New Jersey committee assignments, 2016 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Financial Institutions and Insurance |
| • Judiciary |
2015 legislative session
In the 2015 legislative session, Lagana served on the following committees:
| New Jersey committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Financial Institutions and Insurance |
| • Judiciary |
2014 legislative session
In the 2014 legislative session, Lagana served on the following committees:
| New Jersey committee assignments, 2014 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Financial Institutions and Insurance |
| • Judiciary |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2023
See also: New Jersey State Senate elections, 2023
General election
General election for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Incumbent Joseph Lagana defeated Micheline Attieh in the general election for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph Lagana (D) | 57.1 | 28,447 | |
| Micheline Attieh (R) | 42.9 | 21,361 | ||
| Total votes: 49,808 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Incumbent Joseph Lagana advanced from the Democratic primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on June 6, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph Lagana | 100.0 | 6,451 | |
| Total votes: 6,451 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Micheline Attieh advanced from the Republican primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on June 6, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Micheline Attieh | 100.0 | 3,474 | |
| Total votes: 3,474 | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Lagana in this election.
2021
See also: New Jersey State Senate elections, 2021
General election
General election for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Incumbent Joseph Lagana defeated Richard Garcia in the general election for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph Lagana (D) | 52.9 | 34,895 | |
| Richard Garcia (R) | 47.1 | 31,069 | ||
| Total votes: 65,964 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Incumbent Joseph Lagana advanced from the Democratic primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on June 8, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph Lagana | 100.0 | 6,564 | |
| Total votes: 6,564 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- John Girgenti (D)
- Robert Gordon (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Richard Garcia advanced from the Republican primary for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on June 8, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Richard Garcia | 100.0 | 5,484 | |
| Total votes: 5,484 | ||||
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2018
A special election for District 38 of the New Jersey State Senate was called for November 6, 2018.
The district became vacant following the resignation of Bob Gordon (D) on April 4, 2018, to become a member of the New Jersey Public Utilities Board. Joseph Lagana (D) was appointed to fill Gordon's seat.
General election
Special general election for New Jersey State Senate District 38
Incumbent Joseph Lagana defeated Daisy Ortiz Berger in the special general election for New Jersey State Senate District 38 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Joseph Lagana (D) | 60.1 | 48,451 | |
| Daisy Ortiz Berger (R) | 39.9 | 32,140 | ||
| Total votes: 80,591 | ||||
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2017
General election
Elections for the New Jersey General Assembly took place in 2017. All 80 seats were up for election. State assembly members are elected to two-year terms. The general election took place on November 7, 2017. A primary election took place on June 6, 2017. The filing deadline for the primary election was April 3, 2017.[3] Legislative districts in the New Jersey General Assembly are multi-member districts, with two representatives in each district. In Democratic and Republican primary elections, the top two candidates move forward to the general election, and the top two candidates in the general election are declared the winners.[4] Incumbent Joseph Lagana (D) and incumbent Timothy Eustace (D) defeated Bill Leonard (R), Christopher Wolf (R), and Dev Goswami (Independent- NJ Awakens) in the New Jersey General Assembly District 38 general election.[5][6]
| New Jersey General Assembly, District 38 General Election, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Joseph Lagana Incumbent |
29.30% | 30,800 | |
| Democratic | Timothy Eustace Incumbent |
29.23% | 30,727 | |
| Republican | Bill Leonard | 20.49% | 21,541 | |
| Republican | Christopher Wolf | 20.48% | 21,525 | |
| Independent- NJ Awakens | Dev Goswami | 0.51% | 533 | |
| Total Votes | 105,126 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Department of State | ||||
Democratic primary election
Incumbent Timothy Eustace and incumbent Joseph Lagana were unopposed in the New Jersey General Assembly District 38 Democratic primary election.[7][8]
| New Jersey General Assembly, District 38 Democratic Primary, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Timothy Eustace Incumbent |
50.83% | 7,299 |
| Joseph Lagana Incumbent |
49.17% | 7,060 |
| Total Votes | 14,359 | |
| Source: New Jersey Department of State | ||
Republican primary election
Matthew Seymour and Christopher Wolf were unopposed in the New Jersey General Assembly District 38 Republican primary election.[9][8]
| New Jersey General Assembly, District 38 Republican Primary, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Matthew Seymour |
50.37% | 4,191 |
| Christopher Wolf |
49.63% | 4,129 |
| Total Votes | 8,320 | |
| Source: New Jersey Department of State | ||
2015
Elections for the New Jersey General Assembly took place in 2015. A primary election was held on June 2, 2015. The general election took place on November 3, 2015. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 30, 2015.[10] Since the general assembly uses multi-member districts, the top two candidates from each party in the primaries advanced to the general election. Incumbent Timothy Eustace and incumbent Joseph Lagana were bracketed together and were unopposed in the Democratic primary. Mark Dipisa and Anthony Cappola were bracketed together and were unopposed in the Republican primary. Eustace and Lagana defeated Dipisa and Cappola in the general election.[11][12][13][14][15]
| New Jersey General Assembly, District 38 General Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Timothy Eustace Incumbent |
29.1% | 19,563 | |
| Democratic | Joseph Lagana Incumbent |
29.1% | 19,511 | |
| Republican | Mark Dipisa | 21.9% | 14,721 | |
| Republican | Anthony Cappola | 19.9% | 13,339 | |
| Total Votes | 67,134 | |||
2013
Lagana won election in the 2013 election for New Jersey General Assembly District 38. He and incumbent Timothy J. Eustace (D) defeated Joseph Scarpa (R) and Joan Fragala (R) in the general election on November 5, 2013.[16][17]
| New Jersey General Assembly, District 38 General Election, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Joseph Lagana |
25.2% | 26,279 | |
| Democratic | Timothy J. Eustace Incumbent |
25% | 26,021 | |
| Republican | Joseph Scarpa | 24.9% | 25,965 | |
| Republican | Joan Fragala | 24.8% | 25,836 | |
| Total Votes | 104,101 | |||
Endorsements
In 2013, Lagana’s endorsements included the following:[18][19][20]
- The Sierra Club
- The New Jersey AFL-CIO
- Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey
Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Joseph Lagana did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2021
Joseph Lagana did not complete Ballotpedia's 2021 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of New Jersey scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 9 to December 19. |
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 10 to January 8.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 11 to December 31. |
2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 4 to January 11.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 14 to December 17.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 9, 2018, through January 14, 2020.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the New Jersey State Legislature was in session from January 9 through January 8, 2019.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the 217th New Jersey State Legislature, second annual session, was in session from January 10 through January 9, 2018.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the 217th New Jersey State Legislature, first annual session, was in session from January 12 through January 10, 2017.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 216th New Jersey State Legislature, second annual session, was in session from January 13 through December 31.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 216th New Jersey State Legislature, first annual session, was in session from January 14 through January 12, 2015.
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Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Lagana is married and has two children.
See also
2023 Elections
External links
|
Officeholder New Jersey State Senate District 38 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Tap into Hawthorne, "Assemblyman Joseph Lagana to Succeed Senator Bob Gordon in the 38th District," April 4, 2018
- ↑ Chasan Leyner & Lamparello, PC, "Joseph Lagana," accessed September 16, 2013
- ↑ New Jersey Secretary of State, "2017 Primary Election Timeline," accessed March 21, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Division of Elections, "Official List, Candidates for General Assembly for Primary Election, June 6, 2017," accessed April 13, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Candidates for General Assembly for General Election 11/07/2017 Election," accessed September 14, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "2017 official general election results," accessed November 30, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Division of Elections, "Official Candidate List," April 6, 2017
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 New Jersey Division of Elections, “2017 official primary election results for general assembly,” accessed July 13, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Division of Elections, "Official Candidate List," April 6, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Department of Elections, "2015 Primary Election Timeline," accessed February 2, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Official candidate list for June 2 primary," accessed May 22, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Unofficial primary election results," accessed June 3, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Official list for candidate for General Assembly," accessed August 10, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Official primary results for General Assembly," accessed August 10, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Official general election results for General Assembly," accessed December 7, 2015
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Official general election candidates," accessed February 11, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "2013 Official General Election results," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ PolitickerNJ.com, "AFL-CIO endorses candidates for elections," accessed September 4, 2013
- ↑ Planned Parenthood NJ "Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey Announces Endorsements in State Elections," accessed September 5, 2013
- ↑ Sierra Club endorsements, "NJ Chapter's State Legislative Endorsements ," accessed September 11, 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Gordon (D) |
New Jersey State Senate District 38 2018-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
New Jersey General Assembly District 38 2014-2018 |
Succeeded by P. Christopher Tully (D) |
