PARSIPPANY — Assemblyman Jay Webber announced his intention to run for the Republican nomination in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District.
The 2018 elections present our great nation and Republican Party with an important choice. We can give in to the angry intimidation of the far left who seek to ‘resist’ every idea that comes from someone who doesn’t share their outlier extremism. Or we can stand up for the beliefs and principles that have served our country so well for so long and continue the progress we’ve made in the last year toward reviving our economy, creating more and better paying jobs, strengthening the rule of law, and restoring America’s security and standing in the world. I choose the latter,” said Assemblyman Webber.
Over the last several days, citizens across the 11th District and the country have urged me to step forward to represent our shared values. I accept that challenge, and taking on tough challenges is nothing new to me. I’ve led the fight on the Assembly floor against the Democrats’ reckless tax hikes. I have been on the forefront of a bipartisan effort to improve our public schools by rewarding and encouraging good teachers, and making it easier to fire bad ones. And when the Democrats – and some in my own party – wanted to throw billions of tax dollars at the richest companies in the world instead of providing property tax relief for everyone, I said no,” said Assemblyman Webber.
In the coming months, I will offer a candidacy, first to Republicans in the primary, and then to the general electorate, that will provide solutions to our country’s most troubling issues. Those solutions will be guided by my recognition that so many of our citizens sit at their kitchen tables each day not caring about ‘blue’ or ‘red.’ They simply want a limited and responsible government that respects their rights to live freely, and doesn’t bother them without good reason,” said Assemblyman Webber.
Assemblyman Webber begins the race uniquely positioned to know the priorities of the people of the 11th Congressional District. A native of Passaic County and a resident of Morris County, Assemblyman Webber’s roots in the 11th District run deep. He has represented residents of broad parts of Morris, Passaic, and Essex Counties during his ten years in the State Legislature. Assemblyman Webber has competed in contested primaries and general elections before voters making up much of the electorate of the 11th Congressional District, and those citizens have strongly and repeatedly validated his representation at the ballot box. And during his visits to Sussex County as a Republican Leader, he always has found a warm and welcoming reception from the good residents of the northern part of the 11th.
Assemblyman Webber leads broad coalitions within the GOP, as a former New Jersey Republican Party Chair who also has earned the support of grassroots conservative activists in the pro-taxpayer, pro-life, and Second Amendment communities. Known as a Reagan conservative for his service preserving and protecting Rancho del Cielo, President Reagan’s former ranch home in California, Assemblyman Webber has earned a reputation for taking tough, independent stands for taxpayers, even in the face of powerful forces. Assemblyman Webber also has forged bipartisan coalitions to advance legislation to lower property taxes, support battered women’s shelters, and protect schoolchildren from sexual abuse from predatory teachers.
Jay is fortunate enough to have married the love of his life, and he and his wife of sixteen years, Johanna, have seven children ages three to fifteen. Every day Johanna and Jay perform the same balancing act so many 11th District families perform: paying the bills, getting the kids to schools and sports on time, caring for elderly parents, and all the while trying to keep their priorities straight and see the humor in life.
Jay graduated with a B.A. in International Studies from Johns Hopkins, where he was Phi Beta Kappa, a Rhodes Scholar Semi-Finalist, and a Second Team Academic All-American in baseball. He received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where, most importantly, he met his classmate and future bride, Johanna.
