Senator Joseph P. Cryan ** represents **New Jersey Legislative District 20, which includes Elizabeth, Union, Roselle, and Hillside. Elected to the New Jersey State Senate in November 2017, he previously served in the General Assembly from 2002 to 2014 as Majority Leader and chaired or served on over a dozen committees. Notable achievements include his tenure as Union County Sheriff , where he launched initiatives like a gun buyback program, enhanced courthouse security, active shooter training, a Municipal Transport Unit, a Community Policing Unit, and the CLEAR program addressing the opioid epidemic. He currently chairs the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, serves as Vice Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, and co-chairs the Joint Committee on Public Schools. Cryan has been honored by numerous organizations and is active in Irish-American groups, including as the first General Chairman of the Union County Saint Patrick’s Day Parade and standard bearer of the Cryan Association. Born September 1, 1961, in East Orange, New Jersey, he resides in Union Township with his wife Kathy and children John, Megan Bell, Katie Peterson, and Hannah Peterson.

Education and Political Experience

• Education: Attended Seton Hall Prep for high school; earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Belmont Abbey College in 1983.
• Early Career: Managed defense contracts at ITT Avionics for 10 years; later joined his family’s restaurants.
• Political Experience:
  • Democratic Municipal Chairman, Union Township .
  • Vice Chair and Chair , New Jersey Democratic State Committee.
  • Undersheriff, Union County.
  • New Jersey General Assembly, District 20 .
  • Union County Sheriff .
  • New Jersey State Senate, District 20 ; Executive Director, Middlesex County Utilities Authority.