Beth Sawyer

Beth Sawyer is an American Republican Party politician who represented the 3rd Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly since from January 11, 2022 to January 9, 2024.

Beth Sawyer
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly from the 3rd district
In office January 11, 2022 – January 9, 2024 Serving with Bethanne McCarthy Patrick
Preceded by	John Burzichelli Adam Taliaferro
Succeeded by	Heather Simmons David Bailey
Personal details
Political party	Republican
Residence	Woolwich Township, New Jersey
Website	Legislative webpage

A realtor and resident of Woolwich Township, New Jersey, Sawyer came in third in the 2018 race for township council.^[1]

New Jersey Assembly

In the 2021 general election, Sawyer, together with her Republican running mates Bethanne McCarthy Patrick in the Assembly and Edward Durr in the Senate, knocked off Democratic incumbents Stephen M. Sweeney in the Senate and John Burzichelli and Adam Taliaferro in the Assembly. Before the election, the district had been viewed as a "solidly 'blue'" safe district for Democrats.^[2]

Sawyer was one of a record seven new Republican Assemblywomen elected in the 2021 general election, joining seven Republican women incumbents who won re-election that year.^[3]

In the June 2023 Republican primary, Sawyer ran against incumbent Edward Durr for the 3rd district seat in the New Jersey Senate. Durr won by a 65-35% margin winning all 38 of the municipalities in the district.^[4]

Committees

Committee assignments for the current session are:^[5]

• Aging and Senior Services
• Telecommunications and Utilities

District 3

Each of the 40 districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly.^[6] Representatives from the 3rd District for the 2022—2023 Legislative Session are:^[7]

• Senator Edward Durr (R)
• Assemblywoman Bethanne McCarthy Patrick (R)
• Assemblywoman Beth Sawyer (R)

Electoral history

Assembly

2021 New Jersey General Assembly election for the 3rd Legislative District^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Beth Sawyer	33,878	26.2%	3.2
	Republican	Bethanne McCarthy-Patrick	33,735	26.1%	4.2
	Democratic	John J. Burzichelli (Incumbent)	31,024	24.0%	3.8
	Democratic	Adam Taliaferro (Incumbent)	30,537	23.6%	3.5

References

1. Wildstein, David. "Beth Sawyer wins Salem GOP nod to challenge Burzichelli, Taliaferro; Republicans still looking for second Assembly candidate in LD-3", New Jersey Globe, March 16, 2019. Accessed January 10, 2022. "Beth Sawyer, who narrowly lost a race for Woolwich township committee in 2018, is seeking the Republican nomination for State Assembly in the 3rd district to challenge incumbents John Burzichelli (D-Paulsboro) and Adam Taliaferro (D-Woolwich)."
2. Smith, Joseph P. "Steve Sweeney trailing Republican truck driver Ed Durr in NJ Third District", The Daily Journal, November 3, 2021. Accessed January 10, 2022. "Durr and GOP General Assembly running mates Beth McCarthy Patrick and Beth Sawyer, based on unofficial final results Wednesday, have flipped the solidly 'blue' Third Legislative District into the Republican column. It has been two decades since a Republican represented the Third District in the Senate or Assembly. Generally, Democratic state Sen. Stephen M. Sweeney and Assemblymen John Burzichelli and Adam Taliaferro were regarded as overseeing a safe district."
3. DiFilippo, Dana. "A record-setting election for Republican women in N.J.", New Jersey Monitor, November 8, 2021. Accessed January 10, 2022. "Indeed, it was a record-setting year for Republican women, with voters last week electing as many as seven female GOP newcomers to the Assembly — the most ever, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University (the Associated Press has still not called some of the races). The previous record was four in 2007, said Debbie Walsh, the center’s director.... Seven other incumbent Republican women held onto seats in the Legislature, as well."
4. Fox, Joey. "Durr won every single town in his victory against Sawyer", New Jersey Globe,June 9, 2023. Accessed December 23, 2023. "Durr had famously managed to unseat a sitting Senate President, but would he be able to beat the local Republicans, led by his former running mate Assemblywoman Beth Sawyer (R-Woolwich), who wanted him gone? With Tuesday’s Republican primary election now in the rearview mirror, those concerns look almost quaint. Durr crushed Sawyer by more than 30 points, 65%-35%, scoring a landslide victory in each of the 3rd legislative district’s three counties. In fact, Durr’s victory was so dominant that he managed to win every single town in the 3rd legislative district – all 38 of them." Sawyer's Federal Tax Liens and Division of Taxation Liens became common knowledge during the Primary Election against Edward Durr. Sawyer currently owes more than $500,000, which were first filed against her in 2022. She blamed COVID-19 as the reason for her unpaid taxes.
5. Assemblywoman Beth Sawyer, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed March 14, 2022.
6. New Jersey State Constitution 1947 (Updated Through Amendments Adopted in November, 2020): Article IV, Section II, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 28, 2022.
7. Legislative Roster for District 3, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 11, 2022.
8. 3rd Legislative District 2021 Election Results, New Jersey Department of State. Accessed January 10, 2022.

External links

• Legislative webpage