Chigozie Onyema | |
|---|---|
| Member of the New Jersey General Assembly from the 28th district | |
| Assumed office January 13, 2026 Servingwith Cleopatra Tucker | |
| Preceded by | Garnet Hall |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Newark,New Jersey,U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Education | Essex County College (AA) Howard University (BA) New York University School of Law (JD) |
| Website | Campaign website |
Chigozie U. Onyema is an American politician who was elected member of the New Jersey General Assembly in 2025. [1] A member of the Democratic Party,he previously served as assistant commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. [2]
Onyema was born in Newark,New Jersey,and grew up in the Hilton neighborhood of Maplewood. His parents immigrated to the United States from Nigeria. After graduating from Columbia High School,he unsuccessfully ran for school board in 2005. [3]
Onyema earned his Juris Doctorate from the New York University School of Law,Bachelor of Arts in Afro-American Studies from Howard University,and Associate of Arts in Liberal Arts from Essex County College. [4]
Onyema served as the Senior Director for the Sustainable Cities program at PolicyLink. Previously,he served as general counsel for the Newark Parking Authority and as an assistant commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs under lieutenant governor Sheila Oliver. [3] He was a member of Ras Baraka’s mayoral transition team in 2014 and on Phil Murphy’s gubernatorial transition team in 2017. [5]
In 2022,Onyema ran for the Municipal Council of Newark in the West Ward. His campaign proposed developing a community land trust for affordable housing and improving quality of life. [5] He advanced to the general election against DupréKelly,former Lords of the Underground member and an ally of mayor Ras Baraka. [3] [4]
In 2024,Onyema announced he would run for the New Jersey General Assembly in the 28th district in 2025. He and incumbent Cleopatra Tucker won the co-endorsements of the Essex County and Union County Democratic Committees;incumbent Garnet Hall initially earned the Union County endorsement but lost it for supporting Steve Fulop in the 2025 New Jersey gubernatorial election. [6] [7] He was the first candidate to be endorsed by the New Jersey Working Families Party leading up to the statewide primary election. [8] He placed second in the Democratic primary election,advancing to the general election alongside Tucker and defeating Hall for re-nomination. [9]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cleopatra Tucker (incumbent) | 14,109 | 38.65% | |
| Democratic | Chigozie Onyema | 13,456 | 36.86% | |
| Democratic | Garnet Hall (incumbent) | 8,937 | 24.48% | |
| Total votes | 36,502 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cleopatra Tucker (incumbent) | 47,998 | 50.39% | |
| Democratic | Chigozie Onyema | 47,263 | 49.61% | |
| Total votes | 95,261 | 100% | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | ||
| Dupre L. Kelly | 1,489 | 37.99% | ||
| Chigozie U. Onyema | 1,137 | 29.01% | ||
| Oscar S. James II | 510 | 13.01% | ||
| Lavita E. Johnson | 380 | 9.70% | ||
| Lyndon Brown | 313 | 7.99% | ||
| Michelle Lyn Middleton | 90 | 2.30% | ||
| Total votes | 3,919 | 100.00 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Dupre L. Kelly | 1,973 | 58.65% | ||
| Chigozie U. Onyema | 1,391 | 41.35% | ||
| Total votes | 3,364 | 100% | ||