Democrat,

This week we witnessed the historic vote to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker and the ensuing chaos within the Republican Party to fill his seat. While Democrats are ready to work across the aisle and pass bipartisan legislation to move our country forward, the Republican Party is caught in a civil war that has now ground Congress to a halt. This latest chaos in Washington shows us that the Republican Party has lost the ability to act in the country’s best interests. We cannot allow this extremism to take hold in our state and negatively impact New Jersey families. We must support Democratic candidates for the State Senate and General Assembly who are reasonable, measured and focused on investing in the future of New Jersey families, not on grandstanding and extremism.

This week is also National Voter Education Week, the perfect time to make a voting plan for the upcoming general election on November 7th. As we saw over the last week, the ability to govern effectively is on the ballot this year and it will be more important than ever for us to mobilize voters across our state.

We also know a lot of students recently went back to school and that college life can get hectic so figuring out a voting plan can feel stressful - but Voting By Mail can make it all a breeze! Check out some tips for how to make sure your voice is heard right from campus:

Make sure you're following NJDSC on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook!

Governor Murphy joined the New Jersey Legislative District 16 Dems this week for an impactful roundtable discussion centered around reproductive healthcare and the preservation of body autonomy and privacy within our current legislative landscape. The conversation was filled with forward-thinking insights aimed at addressing the critical challenges that women and marginalized communities face when it comes to their reproductive rights.

Extremist Republicans around the country have been working hard to take away reproductive freedom, passing restrictive abortion bans in several states, trying to close reproductive health centers, and even going so far as to prosecute women for exercising their right to choose. One of the most radical anti-choice Republicans in the country is also now running for State Senate right here in New Jersey. Mike Pappas wants to ban abortion “in all cases,” even in instances of rape or incest. He has received over $30,000 from anti-choice groups, and would allow insurance companies to deny coverage for birth control and other forms of contraception. We can’t let Pappas and his Assembly running mates bring this kind of extreme, Trump-style politics to the 16th District.

Governor Murphy's unwavering commitment to safeguarding these fundamental rights has been a hallmark of his administration. Together with the passionate voices of our legislative representatives, we will continue to push forward towards a future where reproductive healthcare, including access to abortion, remains a protected and accessible choice for all residents in New Jersey.

The Zwicker-Freiman-Drulis team has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood Action Fund because of their strong record championing reproductive health care access and fighting back against Republican extremism. Learn more about the LD16 Democrats and sign up to help them win in November here.

The New Jersey Democratic State Committee will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with a weekly spotlight of trailblazing Hispanic/Latino leaders throughout the state. This week we are proud to shine a spotlight on NJDSC’s Latino Caucus member, Christian Estevez.

Born and raised in Plainfield, New Jersey, Christian is the son of immigrants from the Dominican Republic. Christian graduated with a double major in Labor Relations and Latino Studies from Rutgers University, where he later worked teaching classes focused on Latino Workers in the United States. He was an activist while in college, serving in leadership positions of several organizations, including as Co-Chair of the Latino Student Council.

In 1996 he transitioned from student organizing to community organizing as a co-founder of Pa’lante, a local social justice organization. Christian helped organize New Jersey’s first statewide Latino Leadership Conference in 1999. Christian began his career in the labor movement when he was hired by the New Jersey State AFL-CIO in 2001. In 2009, Christian went to work for Communications Workers of America (CWA), Local 1037, working his way up to Executive Vice President. That same year, he helped found and later served as President of the Latino Action Network, a statewide social justice organization. In 2021, Christian went to work for the CWA National Union, where he now serves as the New Jersey Legislative & Political Director for District 1.

Christian continues his community activism, volunteering and serving on the boards of several organizations, including New Jersey Citizen Action, New Jersey Working Families Alliance, and the Latino Action Network.

This week, President Biden announced that an additional 125,000 Americans have been approved for $9 billion in debt relief through fixes his Administration has made to income-driven repayment (IDR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and by canceling debt for borrowers with total and permanent disabilities. The announcement brings the total approved debt cancellation by the Biden-Harris Administration to $127 billion for nearly 3.6 million Americans, which includes 40,000 borrowers in New Jersey with more than $2 billion in life-changing student debt relief.

To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has canceled:

• Nearly $42 billion for almost 855,000 borrowers who are eligible for forgiveness through income-driven repayment by fixing historical inaccuracies in the count of payments that qualify toward forgiveness;
• Almost $51 billion for 715,000 public servants through Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs;
• $11.7 billion for almost 513,000 borrowers with a total and permanent disability; and
• $22.5 billion for more than 1.3 million borrowers who were cheated by their schools, saw their institutions precipitously close, or are covered by related court settlements.