Greetings, friends and neighbors, I’m fighting a losing battle against cynicism this week, trying not to be so unsurprised by the way things are that I lose sight of the way things could and should be. It’s not a super fun place to be, and I hope to cure it this weekend with a breezy ride on the world-famous Wildwood tram car. So what’s got me feeling some kind of way? Partly, it’s this .
Fighting for a seat
Who runs N.J.? It’s still mostly men. Powerful boards lack women, despite Murphy’s pledge for diversity.
Published on May 02, 2021
Some states have laws requiring or encouraging state boards and commissions to have a 50/50 split between men and women. New Jersey is not one of them.
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At her first meeting as a new commissioner of the state Sports and Exposition Authority, Karen Kessler said officials handed her a gift.
It was a men’s necktie.
“What am I supposed to with this?” Kessler recalls saying.
The neckties, featuring the logo of the Sports and Exposition Authority, were given to every member of the powerful board. At the time, it never occurred to anyone that a woman might be a voting member of the board at the public agency that oversees sports arenas and racetracks.
The Port Authority Board is no place for amateurs | Editorial
Updated 7:00 AM;
After nearly three years of political horse-trading, Gov. Murphy announced his nominees for the mighty Port Authority board of commissioners, which compels us to look at the candidates who will face confirmation votes in the Senate late next month along with a notable omission.
One hopeful that did not make the list has had a career in transportation that can only be described as stellar, but she was passed over because she lacked the political cronies who shepherd such appointments.
Another candidate who did make the cut is someone less than a decade out of law school with zero transportation experience, who happens to be the son of New Jersey’s senior Senator.
Press Releases April 15, 2021, 9:59 am | in
Governor Murphy Announces Nominations for Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Board of Commissioners
TRENTON – Governor Murphy today announced his intent to nominate Michelle Richardson, Dana Martinotti, and Robert Menendez, Jr. to the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Governor also announced his intent to re-nominate Commissioner Kevin McCabe.
“It is my pleasure to nominate this group of experienced and capable professionals to the Board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey,”
said Governor Murphy. “I know that Michelle, Dana, and Rob will continue and build upon the great work that Kevin and the other Commissioners have done over the years.”