Bagolie was elected to the
Livingston Township Council in 2022.[1]
Following the
2021 reapportionment, all of the municipalities in
Morris County were removed from the district, while the
Passaic County municipality of
Clifton was shifted from its longtime home in the
34th district.[3] In the June 2023 Democratic primary, the first held under the 2021 reapportionment, incumbent Senator
Richard Codey defeated incumbent 34th district Senator
Nia Gill, though Codey announced in August that he would retire at the end of the term. McKeon was selected to replace Codey on the November ballot for Senate[4] while
Mila Jasey retired after her hometown was moved out of the district, with newcomers Bagolie and
Alixon Collazos-Gill ultimately chosen to be the two Democratic Assembly candidates.[5]
Bagolie and Collazos-Gill defeated Republicans Irene DeVita and Michael G. Mecca Jr. in the
2023 New Jersey General Assembly election.[6][7] Bagolie was one of 27 members elected for the first time to serve in the General Assembly in 2024, more than one-third of the 80 seats.[8]
^
abElection profile: 27th Legislative District, NJ Spotlight News. Accessed January 9, 2024. "At age 7, my family immigrated to the United States for a better life, settling in Elizabeth, New Jersey. After college, I earned my master’s degree in elementary education and my doctorate in educational leadership at Seton Hall University. Then I earned a second master’s degree in special education at Rutgers.... I’ve dedicated my life to education, starting as a public school teacher, advancing to director of special education and principal, and now serving as superintendent/principal of the East Newark public school district.... My lifelong journey in Democratic politics began as a student at Elizabeth High School when I dove into the world of grassroots campaigning in Union County, working alongside Sen. Ray Lesniak and Mayor Chris Bollwage.... In 2022, I took the bold step of running for Livingston Town Council, emerging victorious in a fiercely contested race."
^Wildstein, David.
"McKeon will get Codey’s Senate seat, Brendan Gill will run for Assembly", New Jersey Globe, August 17, 2023. Accessed January 24, 2024. "Democrats have settled on Assemblyman John McKeon (D-West Orange) to replace Richard J. Codey in the State Senate, with Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill (D-Montclair) set to run for the State Assembly, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed.... The deal averts a floor fight between McKeon and Gill for the Senate seat of Richard J. Codey, a former governor who announced on Monday that he would retire from the Senate at the end of his current term after 50 years in the New Jersey Legislature."
^"Election 2023: Legislative District 27", NJ Spotlight News, May 5, 2023. Accessed January 24, 2024. "Assemblyman John McKeon, a Democrat, an attorney and former mayor of West Orange, was going to defend his seat but now is running instead for the Senate. He is facing Michael D. Byrne of Upper Montclair. Both Democratic Assembly candidates are newcomers, as the other Assembly member, Mila Jasey chose to retire after her hometown was moved into the neighboring 28th District. Rosy Bagolie, a Livingston councilwoman and superintendent of the East Newark School District, is running with Alixon Collazos-Gill, who co-founded a Montclair public affairs firm with her husband, Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill."
^Wildstein, David.
"37 new lawmakers take office at noon", New Jersey Globe, January 9, 2024. Accessed January 9, 2024. "The 221st New Jersey Legislature begins today, with 37 new lawmakers – nearly one-third of the legislature – being sworn in at noon. That number includes ten new Senators and 27 new members of the General Assembly."