Brian Bergen
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly
from the 26th district
Assumed office
January 9, 2024
Serving with Jay Webber
Preceded byChristian Barranco
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly
from the 25th district
In office
January 14, 2020 – January 9, 2024
Serving with Aura K. Dunn
Preceded byMichael Patrick Carroll
Succeeded byChristian Barranco
Personal details
Born (1979-07-08) July 8, 1979 (age 44)
Residence(s)Denville Township, U.S.
WebsiteLegislative webpage

Brian Bergen (born July 8, 1979) is an American Republican Party politician who has represented the 26th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2024. He had represented the 25th district when he took office in January 14, 2020.[1]

Early life and education

Bergen is from Denville Township, New Jersey,[2] where he served on the township council.[3]

Bergen was a member of the cross country running team at James Caldwell High School in West Caldwell, which led to interest to join the team at the United States Military Academy.[4] After attending West Point, Bergen served from 1997 to 2008 in the United States Army as a Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter pilot and earned graduate degrees from the University of Phoenix and Rutgers University.[1]

New Jersey General Assembly

Bergen entered the race for Assembly after incumbent Republican Michael Patrick Carroll announced that he would run for Morris County Surrogate. In the June 2019 Republican primary, Bergen and Anthony M. Bucco won the nomination for the two Assembly seats in the 25th district.[5] After the death of state senator Anthony R. Bucco in September 2019, his son was appointed to fill the senate seat and Aura K. Dunn was appointed to fill the vacant Assembly seat.

In the November 2021 general election, Bergen and his Republican running mate Aura K. Dunn defeated Democratic Party challengers Lauren Barnett and Patricia Veres.[6]

In the 2021 reapportionment, many municipalities in Morris County were shuffled between districts. As a result, Bergen relocated from the 25th legislative district to the 26th district, while Christian Barranco shifted from the 26th District into the 25th.[7]

Committees

Committee assignments for the 2024—2025 Legislative Session are:[1]

District 26

Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly.[8] The representatives from the 26th District for the 2024—2025 Legislative Session are:[9]

Electoral History

26th Legislative District General Election, 2023[10]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jay Webber (incumbent) 28,146 28.7
Republican Brian Bergen (incumbent) 27,831 28.3
Democratic John Van Achen 21,263 21.7
Democratic Walter Mielarczyk 20,962 21.4
Total votes 98,202 100.0
Republican hold
Republican hold
25th legislative district general election, 2021[11]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Aura K. Dunn (incumbent) 42,183 28.25%
Republican Brian Bergen (incumbent) 41,584 27.85%
Democratic Lauren Barnett 33,322 22.31%
Democratic Patricia L. Veres 32,243 21.59%
Total votes 149,332 100.0
Republican hold
25th Legislative District General Election, 2019[12]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Anthony Bucco, Jr. (incumbent) 26,848 27.19%
Republican Brian Bergen 25,552 25.87%
Democratic Lisa Bhimani 23,505 23.8%
Democratic Darcy Draeger 22,850 23.14%
Total votes 98,755 100%
Republican hold

References

  1. ^ a b c Assemblyman Brian Bergen (R), New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 24, 2024.
  2. ^ "Denville's Brian Bergen Wins General Assembly Bid". TAPinto.
  3. ^ "Morris County Assembly race heats up as historically red district becomes more blue". NJTV News.
  4. ^ "Duty, Honor, Country, Still Prevalent for West Point Grad Turned Denville Councilman", My Life Publications, May 7, 2019. Accessed January 14, 2021. "New Jersey native Brian Bergen was a standout on the cross-country team at James Caldwell High School when he attracted the interest of a recruiter at the United States Military Academy at West Point."
  5. ^ Biryukov, Nikita. "Bergen, Bucco win in LD25; Denville Councilman defeats former Frelinghuysen aide", New Jersey Globe, June 4, 2019. Accessed May 9, 2022. "Assemblyman Tony Bucco and Denville Councilman [Brian Bergen] have won the Republican nod in the 25th legislative district, defeating Aura Dunn, an aide to former Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, and attorney John Barbarula."
  6. ^ Fox, Joey. "Bucco, Bergen, Dunn win in the 25th district", New Jersey Globe, November 2, 2021. Accessed May 9, 2022.
  7. ^ Election 2023: Legislative District 25, NJ Spotlight News, May 5, 2023. Accessed January 24, 2024. "The current Assembly members, both Republicans, are Brian Bergen and Aura Dunn, the assistant Republican whip who before assuming office had a longtime career in government and public affairs. Dunn is running for reelection with Assemblyman Christian Barranco, who currently represents the neighboring 26th District, but whose hometown of West Milford was moved into 25th. Bergen’s hometown was moved into the 26th and he is running there."
  8. ^ New Jersey State Constitution 1947 (Updated Through Amendments Adopted in November, 2020): Article IV, Section II, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Legislative Roster for District 26, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 24, 2024.
  10. ^ "Candidates for General Assembly - For GENERAL ELECTION 11/07/2023 Election" (PDF). New Jersey Department of State. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  11. ^ "Official List, Candidates for General Assembly For GENERAL ELECTION 11/02/2021 Election" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  12. ^ Official List Candidates for General Assembly For 11/05/2019 Election, New Jersey Department of State, December 2, 2019. Accessed February 12, 2024.

External links

Members of the New Jersey General Assembly
Categories