Here’s the final list of who’s running for N.J. governor and Assembly this year

New Jersey Globe

By Zach Blackburn and Joey Fox

Conventions are over, petitions are filed, and candidate lists are out: it’s time for primary season in New Jersey to officially begin.

The filing deadline to run in the primary for governor, State Assembly, or any other partisan office up this year was on March 24 at 4 p.m., and 11 gubernatorial candidates and more than 200 Assembly candidates (plus two candidates for a special State Senate election) heeded the call. Both parties are contesting nearly every legislative district in the state, though Democrats make up nearly three-fifths of all candidates who filed.

A handful of other candidates initially filed to run as well, but were barred from the ballot due to issues with their signatures. Legislation signed into law this year increased the number of signatures required for Assembly to 250 (up from 100) and for governor to 2,500 (up from 1,000); some candidates struggled to meet the new requirements, and at least six Assembly candidates were rendered ineligible after challenges to their petitions (as well as a seventh who had residency issues).

Many districts are set to host extremely competitive primaries, and the fight for the governorship is hotly contested on both sides of the aisle as well. And with new legislation in place abolishing the county organizational line and implementing office-block ballots, some county political parties are facing the toughest test of their might in decades.

LD-2 (Atlantic)

Atlantic County Democrats and Team Fulop are duking it out in the Atlantic City-based 2nd district; retired attorney Maureen Rowan and Pleasantville Councilwoman Joanne Famularo, who lost a close race for county commissioner last year, are running on the organization ticket, while former Atlantic City Councilman Bruce Weekes and Linwood Board of Education member Lisa Bonanno are on the Democrats for Change slate.

The winners will go up against Republican Assemblymembers Don Guardian (R-Atlantic City) and Claire Swift (R-Margate), who have no primary opponents. The 2nd district could be competitive – Kamala Harris narrowly carried it last year even as she lost Atlantic County – but Guardian and Swift are seen as strong incumbents who will be tough to beat.