Oroho launches bid for re-election

State Sen. Steven Oroho announced his campaign for re-election in the 24th Legislative District, which covers in parts of Sussex, Morris and Warren counties.

“As the District 24 Senate representative as well as leader of the Senate Republican Caucus, I’ve been fighting Trenton Democrats’ bloated spending and progressive policies that make our state less affordable for families and hamper our personal rights,” he said Jan. 13.

“I’ve fought to cut government red tape to support our Main Street businesses, promote job growth and create economic opportunity. I’ve helped lead the fight to restore parental rights in education and to defend the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens.

“If re-elected, I will continue to work hard for the people of the 24th Legislative District and be the kind of representative they expect in Trenton.”

Oroho, 64, is a Certified Financial Planner. He was a member of the Franklin Borough Council from 2001 to 2006 and the Sussex County Board of Freeholders from 2005 to 2007.

He was elected to the state Senate in 2008 and became the Republican leader last year.

He said he was proud to join Republican candidates statewide who will be fighting to win a legislative majority this fall.

“After five years of Governor Murphy and two decades of full Democrat control of the Legislature, we have a state that is extreme in all the worst ways,” he said.

“We have the highest taxes, the most debt and the worst business climate in the nation. We have rising energy bills that will soar for families and businesses under Governor Murphy’s absurdly expensive green energy plan. We have pandemic learning loss and plunging test scores made worse by school funding cuts to hundreds of districts, many from my legislative district.

“We have ‘woke’ politics being injected into our classrooms and parental rights being stripped away. We have a massive expansion of abortion funding with tax dollars, including no-limits on abortions up until birth, with non-doctors performing them. We have criminals being freed, cops being handcuffed, and the Second Amendment rights of legal gun owners being attacked. If New Jersey voters give Republican legislative candidates the opportunity to lead, we will put an end to these extreme Democrat policies and get our state back on the right track.”

Democrats have had full control of the New Jersey Legislature since 2003. All 120 legislative seats will be on the November ballot.

Oroho said that he will miss running with his district colleagues Assemblymen Parker Space and Hal Wirths this election cycle, but he pointed to several candidates who have expressed an interest in running for the open seat.

Space and Wirths have said they do not plan to run for re-election.

According to the New Jersey Globe, eight Republicans are seeking to replace them: Lafayette Board of Education president Josh Aikens; Sussex County Commissioners Chris Carney and Dawn Fantasia; Enrico Fioranelli, a gym owner from Roxbury; Chester Mayor Michael Inganamort; lawyer Rob Kovic; former Bogota mayor Steve Lonegan, who lives in Sussex; and Warren County Commissioner Jason Sarnoski.

“We have many quality candidates who are willing to pick up the mantle from Parker and Hal and be the same kind of fighters for our district,” Oroho said. “The voters will decide who will ultimately win the Republican nomination and I pledge to work with the winners and run a strong campaign for the general election.”

He also said the work of the joint legislative office has been invaluable to the service being provided to the residents of the legislative district and each prospective Assembly candidate has pledged to continue the tradition of sharing joint district office staff.

“I’m excited for the election ahead and look forward to engaging the voters to share our vision of what a Republican majority can mean for the prosperity of New Jersey,” he added.