JACKSON – A long-time Republican State Senator changed his party affiliation to Democrat – to the surprise of his former GOP colleagues – but then announced he won’t be running for re-election, after all. He changed his mind and is retiring.
Senator Sam Thompson has held the solidly-Republican Senate seat for over 11 years and defended his ability to run once more in a race that if successful would have kept him in his position until he was 92 years old.
During Super Bowl weekend, he announced that he had left the GOP and was planning to run, bypassing a GOP primary challenge, but as of Feb. 27, he decided to change plans again and simply retire from public life.
He explained his switch from GOP to Democrat to Jersey ShoreOnline.com, prior to that announcement saying, “I didn’t leave the Republican Party. The Republican leadership left me.” He noted that the 12th District encompasses four counties, Middlesex and sections of Monmouth, Ocean and Burlington.
“The Republican chairman of Middlesex County, Robert Bengivenga, told me I should not run and that I would die in office. He nor anyone else questioned my mental acuity or my physical health. There are 90-year-old people running marathons. Age is just a number,” the 87-year-old Senator said.
Bengivenga, a councilman from South Plainfield was 38 years old when he was elected Middlesex County Republican Chairman in June of 2021. He is the second-youngest GOP county chairman in New Jersey. This newspaper reached out to Bengivenga for comment through the Middlesex County Republican organization website but did not receive a response at press time.
“There are laws against age discrimination,” the Senator added. He said he’d be up to challenging the man who would have been his primary election opponent and now general election challenger, Old Bridge Mayor Owen Henry, to a 20-mile hike. He also said his announcement has prompted some of his 35,000 constituents to change their own party registration.
Thompson said he now wants to spend more time with his wife and that she needs him more. The announcement came after comments that he was a “full-time legislator and I work full time for those constituents. I don’t want anything to do with my former party leadership.”
Sen. Thompson stated his party change had been more to a strategy of winning re-election than about any broader ideological difference with his former party.
Senate President Nick Scutari had issued a statement officially welcoming Thompson to the New Jersey Senate Democratic Caucus. “After a multitude of extended meetings with Senator Sam Thompson, as well as members of the Senate Democratic Caucus, we want to extend a warm welcome to Senator Thompson as he joins our Majority Caucus.”
Scutari had described Thompson as being “a hard-working legislator who has demonstrated an ability to work in a bipartisan way in support of many shared New Jersey priorities.”
Thompson currently serves on the state Mandated Health Benefits Advisory Commission 2012-present, the state Commission on Capitol Budget and Planning 2014-present, the State Museum Board of Trustees 2014-present, the Public Safety Communications Commission 2016-present, Pretrial Services Program Review Commission 2017-present and the Fire Safety Commission 2018-present.
He was the Republican National Convention Delegate during the years of 2020, 2016, 2012, 2008, 2004, 2000, 1996, 1992 and 1988.
From 2014 to 2016 he served on the Task Force on Health Insurance Exchange Implementation Commission and from 1998 to 2002 served on the Continuing Care Advisory Council.
Thompson was on the State Council for Adult Literacy Services 2000-2002 and the N.J. Advisory Council on Elder Care 1998-2000. He also served on the N.J. Turnpike Authority from 1994 to 1997.
He was the co-chair of the Governor’s Education Task Force in1994 and was with the N.J. Department of Health from1972 to 1994. From 1983 to 1990 he was on the U.S. Armed Forces Epidemiological Board.
The Senator’s military service includes being a Specialist Third Class in the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957.
He was first elected to the Senate in 2012 following his election to the General Assembly in 1998 to 2011.
His committees included the Joint Committee on Housing Affordability (JCHA), Joint Committee on the Public Schools (JPS), Budget and Appropriations (SBA), Education (SED), Military and Veterans’ Affairs (SMV).
Thompson sponsored numerous bills during his time in office including S-571that requires school districts to provide lunch period of not less than 20 seated minutes, S-572 that provides emergency State school aid to certain school districts located in historic communities, and S-573 which requires telemarketers making sales calls to display their name and telephone number on any caller identification service.
The senator also sponsored S-574 that requires retail establishments to allow individuals with certain conditions access to employee restrooms, S-575 requiring all elections in New Jersey to allow voters to vote in person and S-576 which provides supplemental appropriation from Property Tax Relief Fund to DOE to provide additional State aid to certain school districts.
The conservative Middlesex County senator, whose district office is in Old Bridge, would have faced a difficult GOP primary challenge in June for another four-year term.
Thompson was a Donald Trump delegate in 2016 and 2020. Some political observers believed he may have had a better chance of winning a general election as a Democrat if he was able to draw in some Republicans during the fall election.
Some political pundits however, felt the senator switched parties to avoid a potential primary election loss but that he would have ultimately been defeated in the general election.
Henry, who is 25 years younger than Thompson, was the guest of the Jackson Township GOP club on Feb. 22. That club is supporting Henry and Thompson’s two former Republican colleagues.
The 12th legislative district is staunchly Republican, and made up of Assemblyman Alex Sauickie, of Jackson, who took over the seat of Assemblyman Ron Dancer who died on July 23.
Sauickie was appointed in a three-candidate special GOP convention election in August and later elected during the November election to serve in that seat. The second seat of the district is held by fellow Republican, Robert D. Clifton of Matawan.
Assemblyman Sauickie told JerseyShoreOnline.com that upon learning of the Senator’s decision to switch party affiliation, he was “surprised and disappointed” and is looking forward to running with Henry.
Clifton, Sauickie, and Henry announced that they had received County GOP support following a gathering of the Ocean County Republican Screening Committee last week. The three Republicans who are running to represent New Jersey’s 12th legislative district announced that they will run together as a united ticket in this year’s election.
“We go to Trenton not for ourselves but to fight for the people we represent in the 12th Legislative District. We fight for you and for your families against the relentless tax increases and spending as well as the radical social agenda of the Democrats,” the three jointly stated.
“I’m excited for the campaign and promise to keep up the fight for you,” said Clifton, a six-term member of the Assembly, who was elected in 2011. He is also the former mayor of Matawan and a former Freeholder (now County Commissioner) in Monmouth County.
No Democrat candidate has won a Senate seat in the 12th district for two decades. The 12th Legislative District extends from Old Bridge in Middlesex County through sections of western Monmouth into Ocean and Burlington counties.
