Caroline Casagrande

Caroline Casagrande
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly from the 11th district
In office January 10, 2012 – January 12, 2016 Serving with Mary Pat Angelini
Preceded by	Dave Rible
Succeeded by	Joann Downey Eric Houghtaling
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly from the 12th district
In office January 8, 2008 – January 10, 2012 Serving with Declan O'Scanlon
Preceded by	Jennifer Beck Michael J. Panter
Succeeded by	Ronald S. Dancer Robert D. Clifton
Personal details
Born	November 21, 1976 Point Pleasant, New Jersey
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Stephen Chance
Residence	Colts Neck Township, New Jersey
Alma mater	Rutgers School of Law–Camden, J.D. Pennsylvania State University, B.S.

Caroline Casagrande (born November 21, 1976) is an American Republican Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly representing the 11th Legislative District from January 10, 2012 to January 12, 2016. Prior to the 2011 legislative redistricting, she served in the Assembly from January 8, 2008 representing the 12th District. She is the youngest woman assembly member ever elected in New Jersey. She was defeated for re-election in 2015.

Early life and family

Casagrande was born in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, and grew up in nearby Spring Lake.^[1][2] She graduated from Red Bank Catholic High School, in Red Bank, New Jersey, earned a B.S. degree from Pennsylvania State University with a major in Political Science. Casagrande was elected as Undergraduate Student Government president, where she worked to reduce the cost of student transportation around campus, improve student health care services, and protect students from dramatic tuition increases. She was awarded a J.D. from Rutgers School of Law–Camden.^[3]

Casagrande currently lives in Colts Neck Township with her husband, Stephen Chance, and sons, Harrison and Theodore.^[4]

Legal career

Prior to being elected assemblywoman, Casagrande was a partner / attorney with the law firm of Menna, Supko & Casagrande in Shrewsbury, N.J.^[3] Casagrande has also served as municipal attorney to Manalapan Township and special counsel to Fair Haven. Between semesters at Rutgers School of Law–Camden, she clerked at the Prosecutor's Office in Monmouth County and at the New Jersey Attorney General's Office. While in college, Casagrande worked in the new democratic government of South Africa. In law school, she performed pro bono legal services for bankruptcy filers in Camden, N.J. After graduating from law school, she clerked for New Jersey Superior Court Judge Robert O'Hagan.

New Jersey General Assembly

In 2007, Casagrande ran on the Republican ticket for New Jersey State Assemblywoman of the 12th district alongside Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon. She defeated an incumbent Assemblyman (Michael J. Panter), and became the youngest woman to ever be elected to the New Jersey General Assembly.^[5][6] Casagrande served in the Assembly on the Appropriations Committee and the Women and Children Committee.^[3]

In 2011 Casagrande was redistricted to the 11th Legislative District and sought re-election there together with Senator Jennifer Beck, who was also shifted out of the 12th district, and Assembly member Mary Pat Angelini. They were the first trio of women to be elected as a team to the New Jersey Legislature.^[7]

Casagrande served as a Republican Commissioner on the New Jersey Redistricting Commission, which was charged with redrawing the lines of the State's congressional districts following the 2010 United States Census.^[8]

Casagrande and Angelini lost their 2015 bid for re-election in what was considered a surprisingly close race to Democratic challengers Joann Downey and Eric Houghtaling.^[9]

Electoral history

New Jersey General Assembly Election 2015 - District 11^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Eric Houghtaling	15,149	25.6
	Democratic	Joann Downey	14,906	25.2
	Republican	Mary Pat Angelini (incumbent)	14,653	24.8
	Republican	Caroline Casagrande (incumbent)	14,418	24.4
Total votes			59,126	100.0

New Jersey General Assembly Election 2013 - District 11^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Mary Pat Angelini	29,842	30.1
	Republican	Caroline Casagrande	28,827	29.1
	Democratic	Kevin McMillan	20,406	20.6
	Democratic	Edward Zipprich	19,968	20.2

New Jersey General Assembly Election 2011 - District 11^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Caroline Casagrande	18,739	26.7
	Republican	Mary Pat Angelini	18,479	26.3
	Democratic	Vin Gopal	15,392	19.0
	Democratic	Kathleen Horgan	15,060	21.5
	Independent	Daniel Jacobson	2,358	3.3

New Jersey General Assembly Election 2009 - District 12^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Declan O'Scanlon	42,932	31.3
	Republican	Caroline Casagrande	42,662	31.1
	Democratic	Michelle Roth	25,891	18.9
	Democratic	John Amberg	24,125	17.6
	Green	Steven Welzer	1,635	1.2

New Jersey General Assembly Election 2007 - District 12

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Declan O'Scanlon	24,493	25.6
	Republican	Caroline Casagrande	24,352	25.5
	Democratic	Michael J. Panter	23,842	24.9
	Democratic	Amy Mallet	22,870	23.9

References

1. Campaign Web site Archived May 30, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. Accessed June 19, 2009. "Ms. Casagrande is a life long Monmouth County resident, having been born and raised in Spring Lake with her five brothers and sisters."
2. Living Media profile Archived February 18, 2012, at the Wayback Machine., October 23, 2008. Accessed June 19, 2009. "This is not to say, however, that Casagrande has deserted her Jersey Shore roots (she is originally from Spring Lake);"
3. "Assemblywoman Casagrande's legislative webpage". New Jersey Legislature. Archived from the original on December 21, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
4. Assembly Member Caroline C. Casagrande, Project Vote Smart. Accessed April 24, 2008.
5. Staff. "Assembly races: 12th and 30th", The Times (Trenton), October 28, 2009. Accessed May 1, 2013. "It is represented by two Republican first-termers: Declan O'Scanlon Jr., a wireless telecommunications consultant from Little Silver, and Caroline Casagrande, a lawyer from Colts Neck, who at age 30 was the youngest woman ever elected to the New Jersey Assembly."
6. 12the Legislative District Web page biography Archived August 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine., District 12. Accessed June 19, 2009.
7. Walter, Kenny. "GOP legislators kick off run for 11th District: Beck, Casagrande, Angelini would be state’s first all-female legislative team", Atlanticville, June 30, 2011. Accessed July 14, 2011. "A trio of Republican legislators kicked off their campaign to represent a newly configured 11th District last week and to become the state’s first all-women legislative team. Sen. Jennifer Beck and Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande, currently representing the 12th District, and Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini, who currently represents the 11th District, announced their candidacies on June 22 with a press conference at the home of Ocean Township resident Rick Miller.... Earlier this year, the state Legislative Redistricting Committee approved a new district map for the state’s 40 districts that moved Casagrande and Beck from the 12th District to join Angelini in the 11th. The 11th District now includes Eatontown, Long Branch, Ocean, West Long Branch, Red Bank, Shrewsbury and Tinton Falls, among other towns, but will no longer represent Colts Neck, Englishtown, Fair Haven, Little Silver, Manalapan and Marlboro."
8. Members, New Jersey Redistricting Commission. Accessed May 1, 2013.
9. Brent Johnson (4 November 2015). "Democrats oust Republicans in Assembly's 11th District". NJ.com.
10. "Official List, Candidates for General Assembly for GENERAL ELECTION 11/03/2015 Election" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
11. Official List Candidate Returns for General Assembly For November 2013 General Election, New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections, updated as of December 14, 2013. Accessed November 16, 2014.
12. Official List Candidate Returns for General Assembly For November 2011 General Election, New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections, updated as of December 14, 2011. Accessed October 30, 2013.
13. Official List Candidate Returns for General Assembly For November 2009 General Election, New Jersey Department of State, Division of Elections, updated as of December 1, 2009. Accessed October 30, 2013.

External links

• New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure forms - 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007
• Assembly Member Caroline C. Casagrande, Project Vote Smart